Chasing Dreams
by SilverSTXY
Summary: Professor Kukui has a surprise for the Pokemon School's Students: A Trip to Hoenn to see the Wallace Cup! What will happen when old friends reunite and they discover a powerful threat to the whole region? AmourShipping, Ash x Serena, SatoSere. Rated T for language.
1. Chapter 1: Hoenn's Out

**Wow, it's been a while, huh… hey y'all. I've been wanting to write something like this for a long while now, and I've finally got a solid storyboard going. I know you probably don't care too much for this Author's Note crap but I think it's fair to warn y'all that there may be some swearing, depending on how I'm feeling while writing, although the general age of the characters will be left up to your own interpretation. But no violence beyond that of what we already see in the Movies and the like. **

**Also, I think it's fair to warn y'all that the romance angle will not necessarily be a primary focus in this story. I want to make sure that I write each character as close as possible to how we see them presented in the anime. As far as the relationship itself, I feel like more often than not, the relationship is overcomplicated and painfully awkward, taking focus away from the plot. I'm not one for relationship drama, so my goal is to write as if the relationship comes naturally; Ash and Serena are really good friends, and becoming an "item" is simply the natural progression. As such, this story will have lots of cuteness (or is it "fluff"?) and less romantic drama. The romance will be a result of the conflict, like any good fantasy/romance story should be. Look at Harry Potter, look at SAO, etc etc. **

**Some more cool stuff: every chapter will be named after a song. Not actually based on the lyrics of the song, but the chapter will only be NAMED after a song. Some of them will be from the Pokémon Anime, English AND Japanese, but some of them will be from elsewhere. Not all of them will be Pokémon-related. I'll be crediting each song in the Author's Note at the end of each chapter! They aren't actually like "songs you should listen to while reading", they're just songs I'm naming the chapters after. Even so, y'all should listen to them. Though do be warned that I do like a lot of rock, so if that's not your thing, maybe don't listen to them.**

**Also, I probably won't have Author's Notes like this with every chapter, except maybe at the end. But if I do have Author's Notes, they'll be kept very brief.**

**I was gonna upload the prologue as a separate chapter, but it's so short that I just decided to just open this chapter with it.**

**Anyway, without any further ado, enjoy my newest story!**

**Prologue**

"Pikachu… where are we?"

"Pika…"

Ash and Pikachu were very much lost in the forest outside of the Pokémon School. Despite having explored these woods thoroughly over the past year or so of being at the Pokémon School, he still found himself lost somehow.

Pikachu's ears started to perk up. "Pika?"

"Pikachu, you hear something? What is it?" Ash looked to the mouse on his shoulder. Pikachu pointed in the 1 o'clock direction, and Ash went that way.

The duo eventually found a flowing river. "Nice job, Pikachu! We should be able to follow this back to the school!" he scratched under Pikachu's head, getting a happy cry from him.

Just as Ash was about to start walking, a bush next to him started to shake. Ash looked over to it, curious. Soon after, a shadow leaped out of the bush towards the river.

"WHOA!" Ash was caught very off-guard as he backed away from the shadow, slipping and falling to the ground. As he shook off the impact and disorientation, and regained his bearings, he looked to the shadow to figure out what it was.

It was a Poliwag.

"Hey, it's only a Poliwag! Well that's no big deal. Sorry for falling over, Pikachu." Ash apologized as Pikachu smiled and nodded. Before Ash could stand back up, however, he looked back at the Poliwag and his mind flashed back to a certain event.

"_Hey, are you okay?"_

"_Never get up until the end!"_

"_See? You did it!"_

Ash smiled at the memory. He stood up and approached the Poliwag, who looked at him in confusion before backing away slightly. Ash knelt down and held out his hand. "Hey, it's okay, Poliwag. I'm not gonna hurt you. I promise." Ash said lightly as Pikachu seemed to reassure Poliwag from his shoulder.

Poliwag looked up at Ash with a questioning glance before apprehensively approaching Ash's hand. Ash smiled and pet the top of Poliwag's head. Poliwag smiled contentedly. "You're a nice Pokémon, aren't you?"

Even now, the only image in Ash's mind was one of him holding the hand of a young blonde girl, leading her out of the forest. His mind then flashed back to not-so-long ago, and he saw the older version of the same girl, smiling at him.

Ash reached into his bag and pulled out a Pokeball. He tapped the button to Poliwag's head. Even though Poliwag let out a surprised cry, it showed no resistance, and the device soon let out a pleasant sound of finality. Ash smiled. "Well, looks like we have a new friend, Pikachu."

Pikachu smiled at Ash knowingly. Despite not being able to speak to Ash in human language, he knew what Ash was thinking. They had spent most of their lives together, after all. He knew Ash was thinking about her when he saw that Poliwag.

Ash stood back up. "Let's go back, buddy. Sound good?"

"Pikachu!"

Ash started following the river downstream, with a new friend tagging along.

* * *

A honey blonde girl walked out of the Pokemon Center, stretching, preparing for the new day. She had a new destination: Sootopolis City.

She brought out her ribbon case and opened it. She stared at her three ribbons, deep in thought. Two more to go, then the Grand Festival. She had arrived into Hoenn, taking the Novice Contests by storm due to her obvious performing talent from previous experience. She also had transitioned well into Contest Battles, by adapting her performing style, combining it with a special someone's battling style.

She looked up at the sky, a sad smile on her face. She knew they had to go their separate ways; she had her dream, and he had his. They just didn't align right now. She needed the time to focus on herself. They would certainly meet again someday. But her journey just wasn't the same without her friends. She missed them dearly. But, most of all, she missed him.

It had been about twenty months since they had parted ways in Kalos; since she had showed him her feelings in the only way she could think of. She didn't know his whereabouts, as he was very bad at keeping in touch. She could only hope that she would see him again someday. She didn't know when that would be. He was restless, and she didn't know exactly what she wanted to do with herself.

Serena closed her eyes. She had thought this exact same thing many, many times during her time in Hoenn. She had made friends here in Hoenn, but none that had become her travelling companions. After her relatively crazy journey in Kalos, she knew it was important to take this time for herself. But she would never forget him. She constantly thought of him, and their time together.

She looked down at her wrist. A blue ribbon was tied around it. It held all of her emotions, and her precious memories in its royal blue colored fabric. Even if she were to never see him again, she would never allow herself to forget about him. But she couldn't afford to think like that. Of course she would see him again. She smiled.

"Oh, Ash…"

* * *

**Chapter 1: Hoenn's Out**

"Good morning, class! I know it's Monday, and you all are likely a little drowsy, but I have a little surprise up my sleeve that will hopefully lift your spirits."

Ash's head immediately shot up off the desk. "A surprise?" He inquired rather loudly, as he tended to do. Pikachu chimed in from his shoulder with an inquisitive cry of his own.

The whole class broke out into big grins. Ash looked towards his green-haired classmate on his right as she looked back at him with a similarly huge grin on her face. Everyone was grinning at each other in anticipation.

"Tell us what it is, Professor Kukui!" Mallow pleaded excitedly.

Kukui hooked up his laptop to the big screen at the front of the room, and navigated the web browser to a paused video. He clicked the 'play' button, and stood back up and faced the class, smiling. Everyone sat on the edge of their seats as the video began to play.

A tall lady with curly, light brown hair wearing a long pink dress appeared on the screen. The words "BREAKING NEWS" scrolled past behind her. Ash managed to place her pretty quickly. "Hey wait… isn't that Vivian?"

"Attention, all you Pokémon Contest fans out there! We have some huge breaking news! As I'm sure you are all aware, it's almost that time of the year again; time for the Wallace Cup!"

Ash gasped in excitement. "Whoa, no way! The Wallace Cup?"

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed with a huge smile on his little yellow face.

"And this year, I'm beyond thrilled to report that the Wallace Cup is coming home to Sootopolis City! And as such, I am honored to be hosting the event. Coordinators from around the globe will be making their way here to the Hoenn region to participate in the one Contest a year that counts as a win wherever you may be! So don't miss the action! It'll be happening right here, on the PC Network, in just 11 days from now! That's next Friday! Coordinators, make sure that you are all here a day early, because registration for the Wallace Cup will close 24 hours before the beginning of the first round on Friday! The first round will begin at 2 PM on Friday. See you all then!" Vivian waved as the video ended.

Ash stood up out of his seat. "Professor Kukui, are we…?"

Kukui nodded. "That's right, Ash. We are ALL going to see the Wallace Cup in the Hoenn Region!"

The whole class broke out into huge smiles, turning towards each to voice their excitement. Lillie was the first to speak up. "That's amazing! We get to fly all the way to the Hoenn Region?"

Lana, with Sandy on her shoulder, walked over to Lillie and motioned for a high five, which Lillie happily accepted. "Isn't this so exciting? Hoenn is the region with the most water, I can't wait to see what kind of Pokémon are there!"

Ash and Mallow happily high-fived, too. "Yes! This is amazing! This is our biggest trip so far! I can't wait!" Mallow said happily. Shaymin cried out in affirmation.

Ash pumped his fist. "Pikachu, we finally get to go back to Hoenn! This is gonna be awesome!" Pikachu pumped his fist excitedly and cried out in agreement.

Kiawe and Sophocles fist bumped. "This is gonna be so cool!" Sophocles exclaimed. Kiawe nodded in agreement.

"Attention!" Kukui exclaimed, regaining the attention of his class. "Remember, this will be a fun trip, I assure you of that. However, we should also remember that it must have educational value as well. We are going to Hoenn next week to learn and observe the type of Pokémon that live there, and the different ways that people use their Pokémon there. You already know about Gym Battles, but now we'll be taking a look at Pokémon Contests."

"So, then, can you tell us about Pokémon Contests, professor?" Lillie asked the shirtless man.

"Of c-"

"Allow me!"

Everyone's attention was diverted to a voice at the far left of the classroom; the one belonging to Ash. He stood up confidently and walked to the front of the classroom, facing everyone. Kukui smiled, backing away slightly to let Ash do his thing.

"Basically, a Pokémon Contest is this really cool competition where Trainers try to show off their Pokémon in the best way possible! Coordinators use moves and move combinations along with skill and timing to create a performance that shows off their Pokémon's own unique abilities! Bonus points if the performance is pleasing to any of the senses." Ash explained as the class listened intently.

Ash walked over to Kukui's laptop, clearly on a roll, and typed something into the search bar. He then pulled up another video.

"There's two different rounds to a Pokémon Contest. First is the Performance round." he motioned to the big screen. It was Dawn's performance from the Wallace Cup at Lake Valor.

"In this round, Coordinators and their Pokémon do their best to show off the the judges, specifically show off the appeal and unique qualities that their Pokémon have. See how Ambipom uses moves to show off and appeal to the judges? One of Ambipom's most unique qualities is that is has two tails that can both attack at the same time. So that's an example of something you would show off to the judges to impress them." Ash explained as his former Pokémon was shown using its Double Hit on the water to create waves. The class watched on in awe.

"Okay, I think I get it! So I guess you might think that you want to show off the prettiest moves, but in reality you actually want to show off what makes your own Pokémon special in a creative way!" Lillie said, smiling.

"Bingo, Lillie!" Ash winked and gave a thumbs up.

"The judges decide who will make it past the first round. In a normal Contest, only 8 Coordinators go on to Round 2, but in the Wallace Cup, 16 Coordinators move on." Ash explained.

"The second round is the Contest Battle. They're way different from normal Pokémon Battles. The quality of your performance is measured by the points you score. The goal is pretty much the same as the Performance Round, but this time, you're matched up with an opponent who is also trying to score points at your expense. So being in sync with your Pokémon and having good timing and strategy are super important." Ash explained again as went back to the laptop, this time showing the class the final round from that same Wallace Cup; Dawn versus May.

"So it still has the same general feel as a battle, but in Contest Battles, you have a 5-minute time limit, and the points taken away from you are subjective to the judges. So it's still super important to be able to show off your Pokémon and appeal them to the judges in any way you can." Ash smiled a bit bashfully as he turned back to the class. "Sorry I'm not too good at explaining this, but I promise it's super cool. I'm sure you're all gonna love the Wallace Cup!"

"But Ash, how do you know all this stuff?" Sophocles inquired.

Ash turned back to the screen and pointed at the brunette and her bluenette opponent. "I travelled alongside both of these amazing girls and watched them both compete in Pokémon Contests around Hoenn, Kanto, and Sinnoh. I guess it's fair to say that I learned a whole lot from watching all those Contests."

"No way! Ash, these girls are the ones you travelled with in other regions?" Mallow asked him.

Ash nodded. "Yeah, that's right. I travelled with May in Hoenn and Kanto, and I travelled with Dawn in Sinnoh."

"Pika!" Pikachu affirmed.

"Wow, Ash, you've already been to a lot of places. I'm honestly pretty jealous." Kiawe crossed his arms and grinned at Ash.

"Yeah, me too." Lana nodded in agreement.

Ash scratched the back and his neck and laughed. "Well, you know. The road to being a Pokémon Master takes you to a whole lot of different places, that's for sure."

"Thank you for your explanation, Ash. As someone who doesn't have any firsthand Contest experience, I'm glad you were willing to step up and tell everyone what you know." Kukui winked knowingly at Ash.

Ash's eyes widened. "Uh… yeah, no problem."

Kiawe narrowed his eyes and grinned slyly. "Hey, wait a minute… Ash, does that mean you've competed in a Contest before?"

Ash nervously turned to Kiawe, sweat already building up on his face. "Uh, you know, maybe once or twice here and there…"

Pikachu was trying his hardest not to laugh. The rest of the class was looking at Ash in confusion, but didn't notice that Kukui had already pulled Ash's performance from that Wallace Cup.

"Oh no…" Ash facepalmed as Pikachu finally let out his laugh. Everyone turned back to face the screen to find that Ash and his Buizel were standing confidently there on the stage of the Wallace Cup. He was wearing that old-fashioned tuxedo and fedora that was so incredibly different from something the class thought Ash would wear, that it seemed to catch everyone off guard.

Lillie was the first to speak up. "Ash, you were in this Wallace Cup too?"

Mallow grinned coyly. "Wow, Ash. That outfit is really something."

"Listen, okay, I couldn't just go out there in my jeans! I needed to do something and I didn't really have a whole lotta options…"

"Only a true man of culture would adjust a fedora like you just did." Sophocles teased.

Ash sweat-dropped. "Yeah, uh… hey, why don't you just focus on my performance instead of my weird outfit…?"

"Ash, your Buizel is adorable!" Lana exclaimed excitedly.

"Thank you, Lana. At least someone is on my side here…"

"... but your outfit could use some work. What on Earth were you thinking?" Lana finished her thought.

Ash fell on the ground, face first. They would never let him live that one down.

"Alright, class, that's enough. Sorry about that, Ash, but I couldn't resist." Kukui teased. "Back to business, everyone. We'll be leaving for Hoenn in 8 days from today, on Tuesday. You'll have next Monday off to rest your batteries, then make sure you come in early on Tuesday, and with all your things, because we're leaving for the airport in Hau'oli City, pronto! Our flight will leave at about 10 AM, but we'll have to check into the airport at about 9 AM. So be here at 8. Everyone got it?"

"Yes sir!"

* * *

"Here we are! Hau'oli City airport!" Kukui exclaimed as he turned back to the class. "Alright, roll call! Let's make sure everyone's here. Mallow and Shaymin?"

Mallow jumped and waved her free arm, while the other kept hold of her admittedly big green suitcase. "We're here!" Shaymin cried out in affirmation in her arms.

"Lana and Sandy?"

Lana waved. "Present!" she yelled over the airport noise as Sandy called out as well.

"Sophocles and Togedemaru?"

"We're all ready, sir!" Sophocles pumped his fist above his head as Togedemaru jumped slightly off of his head and cried out in excitement.

"Kiawe?"

"Here!"

"Lillie and Snowy?"

"Here, professor!" Lillie called out as the Alolan Vulpix on her shoulder raised her paw in acknowledgement.

"Ash and Pikachu?"

...

"Ash. And. Pikachu."

"WE'RE HERE PROFESSOR!"

"Pika!"

Kukui looked out into the sea of people outside of the entrance to the airport to see Ash running towards them, with Pikachu on his shoulder and a drink cup in his hand. As he finally joined the group's tight circle, Mallow looked at him suspiciously, eyeing his cup.

"What? I wanted a milkshake."

Mallow gasped in exasperation, but couldn't help to smile up at Ash in spite of his general goofiness.

"Alright then, looks like everyone's here and accounted for. Let's move, class!"

"Alright!" Everyone fist pumped.

As the class plus Kukui uncomfortably made their way through the sea of travellers, business-folk, and airport personnel, the class began to talk amongst themselves, beyond excited for their newest Field Trip. After a successful check-in and baggage scan, as well as a very long wait in the line for a security check, the group found their way to their gate, as they waited for their plane to arrive. They were to land in Lilycove City after about a 6-hour flight.

The three boys sat across from the three girls in the waiting area, while Kukui was talking with his wife, Professor Burnet, who was also coming along for the trip. Ash was getting a little restless.

"Ash, don't start getting antsy already, we're not even on the plane yet. And we have a pretty long flight ahead of us." Kiawe said.

"I know, but you know I'm no good at sittin' around in one place like this for a long time." Ash complained as his feet repeatedly tapped the floor. Pikachu nudged his face against Ash's in empathy, a little impatient himself.

"Ash, I'd much rather be up and doing something too, but just remember, when we touch down, we'll have the rest of today and all of tomorrow to do whatever we'd like in Lilycove City!" Mallow said, hoping to reassure him a bit.

"That milkshake probably didn't help, Ash." Sophocles remarked, grinning slightly.

Ash scratched the back of his neck and laughed nervously. "Yeah, you're probably right." He then turned to Mallow, who yawned widely. He shot her a concerned look. "You alright, Mallow?"

"Mm?" she turned to Ash and waved her hand slightly. "Oh, don't worry, I'm fine. I actually was so excited about this trip that I had a little trouble sleeping last night." she admitted, scratching Shaymin's little head.

Lillie and Lana smiled empathetically. "I know how you feel." Lillie told her. "I had some trouble falling asleep myself, to be honest."

"But it'll definitely be worth it when we get there. We're gonna get to see so many new things and I know we'll all have a great time." Lana said excitedly.

"This is the call for flight 395 to Lilycove City in Hoenn, your plane has arrived and we will be calling you to board as soon as everyone has exited the plane. Please gather your things and be prepared to board." a voice spoke through the airport speaker system.

"Everyone ready?" Kukui's voice called as he walked over to the group with Professor Burnet.

"Yes sir!" Everyone said in unison.

"Good. We'll be boarding in just a minute. Grab your carry-on bags and follow me to the boarding line." Kukui pointed to the entrance of the aforementioned line. The students nodded in affirmation.

Everyone soon boarded the plane and sat down with all of their carry-on items. Each row of seats was arranged with three seats on either side of main isle. Lillie, Mallow, and Ash sat in one section, Lana, Sophocles, and Kiawe sat in the adjacent section, and the adults sat directly behind Ash. Lillie and Lana had window seats, while Ash and Kiawe had isle seats. Needless to say, neither of those two were particularly excited about that.

Everyone settled into their seats and the plane took off a little while after. As the plane found a home altitude in the sky, everyone was able to relax and enjoy the ride. Mallow almost immediately yawned. "I think I might try to make up for the sleep I lost last night."

Ash nodded. "Good idea. Hopefully I can find a cool movie to watch on this thing here. There's so many to choose from. Technology is so amazing!" he looked down to Pikachu on his lap, who nodded in agreement. Lillie smiled at them as she pet Snowy on her lap, who relaxed into her touch and closed her eyes in content.

As Ash was using the touch screen to search for adequate entertainment, he felt something fall onto his shoulder. He looked over to find that Mallow had already drifted to sleep, and, in her slumber, had fallen on to him with her head now resting on his shoulder. He was caught off guard at first, shooting a glance at Lillie, who smiled sheepishly. "Let's leave her be. She was obviously quite exhausted from not getting enough sleep last night."

Ash nodded, his smile returning to his face as he turned back to the screen in front of him. Noticing Ash was still a bit antsy, Pikachu got up from Ash's lap to move over to Mallow's. Shaymin smiled and the two curled up together for a collective nap.

A certain green-haired girl couldn't help but let out a smile, and she gently scratched Pikachu's head.

As Ash finally settled into his seat for movie time, he subconsciously leaned his head over to rest on Mallow's. However, his thoughts drifted to another girl, a girl buried not-so-deep in his memories of the last region he travelled in. He knew she was in Hoenn, and he knew she was competing in Contests. He knew no Coordinator would pass up a chance at competing in the Wallace Cup. Not even Ash himself passed it up back in Sinnoh. Would he see her there?

Feelings change. Ash himself, however, does not. He has been and will always be a reckless, determined goofball who's always ready for adventures or a battle. But somehow, he was oblivious to some of the more complicated emotions; at least, that was until the incident at the Lumiose City airport. His mind always seemed to drift back to it. He couldn't help but think of her, her pretty face, her sparkling eyes, her lovely smile. Even after all these years, Ash had been so focused on his dream of becoming a Pokémon Master, that he hadn't even tried to understand the idea of "liking" someone. Honestly, he still didn't really understand. But perhaps now, he had a little idea. Maybe, if he saw her again, he would learn more about what he felt.

All he knew is that he wanted the best for her. He wanted to see her succeed. But most of all, he wanted to see her again.

In a few hours, everyone would finally be in Hoenn.

* * *

**Yeah, surprise! I know this is supposed to be AmourShipping and everything but I couldn't help it. I adore Mallow. Also, as a side note, I'm keeping Mallow's Tsareena as a Steenee instead of a Tsareena because, well, you know… then we'll have a Tsareena and a Serena… and that would just make my brain hurt. Steenee's cuter anyway.**

**But as I'm sure you can tell, I really want to write these as if they were actual episodes of the anime. This will surely lead to all kinds of random silliness, in actions and dialogue. So just be prepared. **

**Song is: "Hoenn's Out" which is a Pokémon Parody of OneRepublic's "Love Runs Out" by NateWantsToBattle.**


	2. Chapter 2: High Touch

**Chapter 2: High Touch**

"So this is Sootopolis City!"

Serena stepped out of the submarine that had taken her from Lilycove City to Sootopolis City. She was finally able to see why the Wallace Cup was being held here, and why Wallace was a water-type trainer. The city was surrounded on almost all sides by water, and the huge rock formation that hid it away from the rest of the world. The only way in and out of Sootopolis City is underwater, so the only wild Pokemon that could've ended up here naturally were water-types.

She brought out her guidebook and found directions to the Pokemon Center. She smiled confidently. It was time to finally show the whole world what she could do.

Maybe a special someone, somewhere, would be watching her.

* * *

Mallow was awakened by the airplane's turbulence as it descended to the ground at the Lilycove City airport. As she opened her eyes, she felt a hand rub her shoulder.

"Wake up, sleepyhead. We're here."

Mallow groggily looked towards the source of the voice. She tilted her head upwards and saw Ash's face very close to her own, smiling at her. She looked back down, shutting her eyes again as she nuzzled back into Ash's shoulder, clearly still drowsy.

"I know you're tired, but we're just about to land in Lilycove City! You don't want to be left on the plane by yourself, do you?"

Just after he finished talking, the plane hit the ground, causing everyone bounce in their seats. Mallow opened her eyes, finally lifting her head from Ash's shoulder and rubbing her eyes. "I guess not."

Ash smiled at her, to which she smiled lightly back at him. Mallow looked down to find Pikachu and Shaymin still curled up together on her lap, but Pikachu was awake and looking up at her. "Pika?"

Mallow smiled. "Hey, Pikachu." She scratched its head, earning a smile and a light, content cry from the electric-type.

She looked back to Ash and smiled at him. "Thanks for letting me borrow your shoulder, Ash. I hope I didn't bother you too much."

Ash grinned at her. "Of course. No worries."

The plane soon docked and the passengers began to exit. As the group finally got out of the narrow passage and into the Lilycove airport, they all stretched a bit, stiff from sitting still for so long. The airport was crowded, much more crowded that the Hau'oli airport. It was clear that there many different types of people coming to Hoenn for many different reasons, though talk of the Wallace Cup seemed to be ever present in the air.

Ash was the most relieved to be off the plane. Pikachu had found his way back to his home on Ash's shoulder, and the duo stretched in unison. "Ahh… we're finally off the plane, and finally in Hoenn again! I can't wait to explore and see what's changed since last time we were here!"

"Pikachu!"

"Now, now, you two, let's not get ahead of ourselves. We still have to pick up our bags and check into the Pokémon Center before we can do anything else. First things first." Professor Kukui said and he walked up behind Ash, followed by his wife and the Principal.

Ash smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. "Guess you're right."

As everyone finally collected themselves, they began to walk amongst the crowd toward the exit of the airport, making sure to stay close so as to avoid losing anyone from the group. They all collected their luggage from the baggage claim area and finally left the airport. Everyone broke out into huge smiles as they finally got the chance to look around Lilycove City, seeing all the people wandering around and places to go.

"This place is huge! It's way bigger than Hau'oli City!" Mallow exclaimed.

"You're right! Look at all the people and the tall buildings!" Sophocles agreed.

Lana sniffed the air, then smiled contentedly. "And we're right next to the ocean, so you can still feel the breeze of the sea and smell it in the air! The air doesn't feel like a big city!"

"I'm ready to see some Pokémon native to Hoenn, I already see so many that I don't recognize!" Kiawe noted.

Ash grabbed the brim of his hat, feeling the wave of nostalgia wash over him. "This place is ringin' a bell, right, Pikachu?"

"Pika!" It nodded, smiling.

Lillie turned to Professor Kukui. "Which way is the Pokémon Center, professor?"

Kukui took a map out of his pocket and studied it for a moment. He pointed off to the left. "Let's head 10 o' clock, gang."

Ash pumped his fist. "Right! I'm so psyched! Let's go!"

The rest of the students pumped their fists too. "Yeah!"

Ash lead the group in the direction of the Pokémon Center, careful to continue staying tightly packed and avoid being held up by the all the people passing by.

"Ash, do you actually know where the Pokémon Center is?" Mallow asked after a while of following him, tilting her head in suspicion.

Ash's smiled a bit nervously and scratched his face. "Um… it's been a while, so not really."

"Of course…"

"That's our Ash." Lillie said, smiling.

"Don't worry, this is the right way. We're almost there." Kukui said.

"You got lucky this time, Ash." Kiawe said, smirking slightly.

Ash laughed nervously, scratching his face again as he continued walking alongside the streets of Lilycove, and still at the head of the group of Alolan schoolfolk.

As they arrived at the Pokémon Center and the automatic door slid open, they saw that the building was packed with people, mostly tourists, all going to see Wallace Cup. Ash waved as they entered. "Nurse Joy! Can you help us?"

The nurse looked up from her computer at her desk, Chansey by her side. "Yes, of course! What can I do for you?"

Professor Kukui spoke up. "We need to book some rooms for tonight, please. There are eight of us."

Nurse Joy smiled sweetly. "You're just in time! I've got just two rooms left that'll be perfect. There are four beds in each one."

Kukui nodded. "Thank you very much, Nurse Joy."

He turned back to his wife and his students. "How about we do the boys in one room and the girls in the other? That work for everyone?"

"Yes sir!" Everyone nodded.

"Wow, Nurse Joy, you certainly have your work cut out for you." Lillie said.

Nurse Joy smiled. "Well, of course! It's always busy in the big city, but it's extra busy for the Wallace Cup! There's no airport in Sootopolis City, so many people have to travel through here and take a submarine trip to get there."

She motioned to the side with her hand. "But it's all okay! I got sent a helper from the Pokémon Doctor's training school! He's my intern as the crowds move out of and back into Lilycove City!"

Everyone turned in the direction Nurse Joy motioned to, and saw figure pushing a cart with a Pokémon on it towards them. He finally came out of the hallway as the Pokémon Center jingle was played, showing that the Pokémon on the cart had made a full recovery; the Pokémon in question was a Vibrava.

Ash gasped and pointed. "Hey! It's Brock!"

Everyone gasped and smiled. "It really is Brock!" Lana said in surprise.

Brock turned to where he heard his name called. He gasped and smiled wide. "Hey! If it isn't Ash! And everyone too!"

As the Vibrava's trainer thanked Brock and returned it to its Poke Ball, he pushed the cart back into the hallway and ran over to meet up with everyone. "I can't believe you're all here! It's so nice to see you all! How is everyone doing?"

"Pikachu pi!" Pikachu happily jumped from Ash's shoulder to Brock's. Brock laughed in response, scratching under its chin. "Hey, Pikachu! It's nice to see you too, bud."

"We're all doing great! We're on a field trip to see the Wallace Cup!" Ash said in response.

Nurse Joy motioned to Brock. "So you all know each other! Brock has been a huge help with the recent rush of people coming into the Pokémon Center."

Brock smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Thank you, Nurse Joy. But I'm just doing my part to help out around here. It's my job now!"

"That's so cool that you're getting real hands-on experience now, Brock! This can't be an easy workload for you." Ash said.

"No, you're right about that. But I'm always happy to help out, and it's great to see so many different Pokémon from so many different regions coming together here. It's really great experience for me!" Brock said, making a fist, almost resembling something Ash would do.

"But, I'm actually going to go see the Wallace Cup too! Would you all mind if I tagged along with you tomorrow when you leave?" Brock asked.

Everyone gasped in excitement. "Brock, that would be so awesome! Right, everyone?" Ash asked.

"For sure!" Mallow said. Kiawe nodded in agreement.

"It would be wonderful to have you with us!" Lillie said excitedly.

"Of course, Brock! Please, meet us in the lobby tomorrow morning!" Kukui said, smiling.

"Right!" Brock nodded.

"Pikachu!" The mouse agreed from Brock's shoulder.

"It'll be just like old times! We'll be watching a contest together!" Ash said, holding out his fist to Brock.

"Yeah, it'll be great, Ash!" Brock returned the gesture.

"Great! Now that that's settled, I wanna go shopping!" Mallow said with excitement, looking at her two female classmates.

"Me too, me too! I wanna see all the cool shops and things we can buy in such a big city!" Lana agreed.

"Oh, yes! Let's go see all the lovely regional clothes, too!" Lillie exclaimed.

Mallow turned to Ash with a teasing grin on her face. "You're coming too, right, Ash?"

As Pikachu jumped back to Ash's shoulder, he saw his trainer look at him in sheer terror. "Uh… gotta run!"

Before Ash could go anywhere, he was grabbed by the hand, freezing him in place. He turned around in terror to find Mallow had stopped him. "Ash, you're coming with us, right?"

Before he could answer, Mallow started dragging him towards the exit anyway. Ash sighed, surrendering to the girls. He knew by this point that there was no point to arguing or trying to against what the girls wanted. "Why am I doing this again?"

"Well, someone has to carry our bags."

"You're such a gentleman, Ash!" Lillie remarked as she leaned in towards him, grinning playfully. Brock and Ash's male classmates watched on, entertained by the scene.

Ash sighed again. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

"Hey, where did Ash go?"

"Did he get away?"

The three girls looked around the shop they were in, searching for said boy and his partner. He was nowhere to be found. It surely didn't help that just about every shop was fairly packed with people.

"All these people must've given Ash a way to escape us. He'll pay for this." Mallow said, mock-seriously.

Lillie laughed. "Well, it's okay, we haven't actually bought anything yet. But we should definitely pick up some souvenirs or something while we're here!"

"Yeah, you're right." Lana agreed, looking around. They were on the third floor of the Lilycove Department store. She spotted some fancy-looking watches inside a looking glass, all lined up in showcase. "Hey, what are these?"

Lillie and Mallow walked up to the glass on either side of Lana. "Not sure." Lillie said.

"Those are Poketches!"

"Huh?"

They all turned toward the direction of the voice to find a girl about their age with blue hair, wearing a black blouse and a pink skirt that was a little too short, along with pink boots and a white hat. She also had a small blue penguin Pokémon on top of her head.

"Poketches?" Mallow asked.

"Yeah! See? I've got one!" The girl lifted her wrist and pointed. "They started in Sinnoh, and they're so popular these days that they've made their way to Hoenn too! But this one here is one of the earlier designs from Sinnoh."

"So then, are you from Sinnoh?" Lillie asked in curiosity.

"That's right. My name's Dawn, and up there is my partner, Piplup! It's nice to meet you all!" She reached out her hand for them to shake.

"Nice to meet you Dawn, I'm Mallow." She shook Dawn's hand, still keeping one arm around Shaymin.

"I'm Lana! This here is Sandy." She waved.

"And I'm Lillie. My partner is Snowy!"

"Mallow, is that a Shaymin in your arms?" Dawn asked, clearly surprised.

Mallow smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, but it's not actually my Pokémon. I'm just taking care of it until the Gracideas bloom back home in Alola."

"I see. So you all are from the Alola region. I've heard of it!" She turned to Lillie. "So is your Vulpix from Alola too? I've never seen a white one before."

Lillie nodded. "Yes, this is Vulpix's Alolan form. It's an Ice and Fairy type!"

"Wow, that's so cool! So, what are you all doing so far away from home?" Dawn asked.

"Well, we're actually on a school field trip. We're going to see the Wallace Cup!" Lana said excitedly.

"No way, really? Well, I'm gonna be competing!" Dawn announced.

The three Alolan girls gasped in excitement. "That's amazing! You're a coordinator?" Mallow asked.

"That's right! I'm currently travelling in the Johto Region, but I've come here to compete since the Wallace Cup ribbon counts towards any region's Grand Festival!" Dawn said.

Lana squinted. "Hmm… now that you mention it, I feel like I recognize you from somewhere…"

Lillie stroked her chin. "I also can't help but feel like I may have seen you before."

"Really? Well I have been in quite a bit of Pokémon Contests, so I guess it's possible." Dawn laughed, a bit nervous.

"Hey! Now I remember! Didn't you win the Wallace Cup a few years back?" Lana asked.

Dawn nodded. "Oh yeah! I won it back on my first journey when it was in Sinnoh!"

"Hey, I remember it too! Our friend showed us videos of your performances when he was explaining Contests to us." Mallow remembered.

Lillie laughed. "He was with us before, but he left a little bit ago. Mallow did kind of drag him shopping with us, so I guess it's only natural that he'd try to leave."

Mallow turned to face Lillie. "Ash is lucky we haven't actually bought anything yet." She said, still feigning anger and annoyance, although clearly some percentage of her pouting was real.

Dawn did a double-take. "Hold on, did you say Ash?"

Mallow turned back to her new friend and nodded. "Yeah, that's our friend's name. He's the one who showed us the videos of you in that Wallace Cup."

Lana smirked. "And we got to see his performance too. I never thought I'd see Ash wear anything formal, much less an outfit that incorporated a fedora."

Mallow and Lana giggled at the thought. Dawn shook her head, laughing too. "Hold on, you all said you're on a field trip, right? I never thought I'd see Ash attend any kind of school!"

The three Alolan girls looked at Dawn inquisitively. "Wait, so do you know Ash?"

Dawn nodded. "Yeah! We're really great friends! We travelled through Sinnoh together around when that Wallace Cup took place!"

"Hey, wait! Ash also mentioned that, didn't he? That he travelled around Sinnoh with a girl named Dawn?" Lillie perked up.

"Oh yeah! I totally forgot about that!" Mallow said. "Well, it's so great to finally meet another one of Ash's good friends! We would love for you to come shopping with us, and then we can take you back to the Pokémon Center to meet up with him!"

"You read my mind! That sounds great! I've been meaning to do some more shopping myself." Dawn fist pumped, resembling Ash.

The three girls giggled. "You looked exactly like Ash just there." Lana said.

Dawn paused for a moment, looking up at Piplup. She smiled sheepishly. "You're so right. I guess I'm glad we're talking about the same Ash."

The girls all laughed together, and went off to do some more shopping.

* * *

Ash ran out of the Lilycove Department Store, out of breath. He had managed to get away from the girls using the crowds of people to hide his escape.

"Pika…" The mouse on Ash's shoulder sweatdropped as Ash finally stopped, putting his hands on his knees to recover.

"We finally managed to escape… girls are scary when they know what they want. There's no arguing with them, is there?" Ash asked, panting. Pikachu nodded in response.

Ash finally stood back up straight. "Let's head back to the Pokémon Center. I know Brock's busy and all, but hopefully we can chat tomorrow. I could still go for some food. Sound good, buddy?"

Ash and his partner made the trek back to the Pokémon Center, walking through the door, finally rid of the exhaustion from shopping. His classmates and the professors saw him walk in. They were all sitting at a table in the lobby.

"Hey, Ash! I see you managed to escape the girls." Kiawe said, smirking slightly.

Ash sweatdropped. "Yeah, by the skin of my teeth. If I'd been caught, I'd have been burned alive."

"Hey, Ash! Come try this food, it's great!" Sophocles said between chewing.

Ash's eyes widened as he grinned. "Food?! Sweet!"

Brock walked out of the hallway and saw Ash sit down at the table and immediately start eating. He let out a hearty chuckle at the sight. "Ash will be Ash."

* * *

"I'm glad we were able to pick up a few souvenirs at the shops!"

"Yeah! These necklaces are so cute!"

The girls had finally finished shopping. The girls, finally satisfied with their purchases, were almost to the Pokémon Center. They all carried small bags with souvenirs in them. As they entered the building, the girls saw their classmates and waved to the professors, who were facing them. They saw Ash and Sophocles eating at the table.

Dawn sighed, but still smiled. "Of course Ash is eating."

Mallow ran up to the table. "Hey, Ash! We found someone we think you might know!"

Ash turned around, his mouth still full. He grunted questioningly at her as he looked up from his sitting position. Almost immediately, he noticed the bluenette standing behind Mallow. His eyes widened and he almost spat out his food. He made another grunt in shock, but then decided he should swallow his food before trying to talk. He pounded on his chest in an attempt to remove the food from his throat.

"Jeez, Ash. You haven't changed at all, have you?"

Ash finally swallowed. "Dawn! And Piplup too! It's so good to see you!" He stood up from his chair and walked towards the bluenette.

"It's great to see you too, Ash!" She smiled widely at him. She met Ash and the two shared a hug. They quickly separated and Ash held up his hand, motioning for their trademark high five. Dawn giggled and complied, and the sound almost seemed to echo.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu ran from the foot of Ash's seat at the table and jumped into Dawn's arms.

"Hey there, Pikachu! Long time, no see! Glad you're doing well, too!" Dawn brought the Pokémon close to her face, letting Pikachu nuzzle her. She let Pikachu go and Piplup jumped down from her shoulders to meet Pikachu on the ground. The two Pokémon hugged as well and were really happy to see each other.

"I'm guessing you'll be in the Cup?"

"That's right! I can't wait to compete!"

"We'll catch up when I'm done eating." Ash turned to his female classmates. "What'd you all end up getting?"

Mallow motioned to just below her neck. "Look at these, Ash! We got these super cute necklaces! Mine is a Roselia!"

Lana held hers out. "Mine's a Milotic! They're such beautiful Pokémon!"

Lillie held hers as well. "And mine's a Jirachi! It's supposedly a legendary Pokémon that grants wishes!"

"I like them! They suit you all well." Ash smiled.

Dawn took note of this, seeming surprised. "Ash, did you just… compliment girls on their looks?"

Ash turned to her in slight confusion. "Well, sure. What's that supposed to mean? It's not like it's a big deal or anything."

Dawn squinted. Ash had actually… matured? "Never mind. Go back to eating. I could go for some dinner myself."

"Great idea!" Ash agreed. He began to turn around but stopped midway, turning back to Dawn. "Hey Dawn! Guess what? Brock's here too!"

Dawn was surprised again. "You're kidding."

"Nope! He's Nurse Joy's assistant here while it's so busy! He'll probably come around here pretty soon!"

"That's great! It'll be so great to see Brock again too!"

"Yeah! We'll have the old gang back together for a bit! He's coming with us to see the Wallace Cup too." Ash said before sitting back down and continuing to eat.

All four girls sat down around the table. Professor Kukui turned to Dawn. "I recognize you as the girl that Ash travelled with in Sinnoh. It's very nice to meet you, young lady. I'm Professor Kukui, and I'm the teacher of this class. This next to me is my wife, Professor Burnet."

Kiawe waved as well. "I'm Kiawe. This one here matching Ash's appetite is Sophocles."

Dawn smiled and nodded. "It's very nice to meet you all!"

"We're looking forward to seeing you compete in the Wallace Cup! Ash is the only one of us who has seen a Contest live before." Professor Burnet said.

"You won't be disappointed! The Wallace Cup is sure to be filled with talented Coordinators from all over the world! I'll have my work cut out for me, for sure!" Dawn said.

"Good luck, Dawn! We know you'll be so great!" Mallow said to her new friend, smiling wide.

"Thanks, Mallow!" Dawn smiled back.

Brock walked back into the lobby, pushing a cart of trainers' Pokeballs. Dawn noticed Brock walk in and gasped. "Hey, there's Brock!"

She waved to her friend. "Brock! Over here! Hi!"

Brock looked over to where his friends were sitting, and saw that the girls had finally come back, and they brought a guest. "No way, it's Dawn!" He handed over the Pokeballs to Nurse Joy before walking over to the table. He waved to Dawn.

"Dawn, it's so great to see you! It's been a long time!"

"Yeah, it sure has! It's great to see you, too!"

Ash looked between Dawn and Brock. He had a mouth full of food, but he said something that his friends could make out as, "Alright, the Sinnoh gang is back together!"

Dawn looked at Ash, playfully upset. "Ash, please don't talk with your mouth full."

Ash swallowed his food. "Hey, I'm just excited okay? Just let me be happy without trying to make me have table manners on a field trip!"

"Ash, all of your friends are around, it's rude to talk with food in your mouth! You might spit your food on someone!"

"But if I have to wait to swallow my food, it could disrupt the flow of the conversation and cause an awkward silence!"

"Well it's worth not having food spit all over you. Have some decency, Ash Ketchum."

"Whatever."

Ash's friends sweat-dropped but still smiled at the scene, enjoying the scene of two old friends bickering a bit. They were all used to Ash's table manners; or rather, lack thereof. They had certainly gotten used to it. Mallow was usually the one to try to fix his manners, but it always only seemed to be a temporary fix.

Brock smiled. "Neither of you two have changed at all. That's reassuring."

* * *

"It's perfect."

A man hidden in shadows looked over his creation. He picked it up from the table and placed it on his wrist.

"This will undoubtedly work. My research is thorough, my programming is flawless."

He then looked to the two glowing orbs that were also on the table. He picked them up in his hands. "With these, I can summon the legendary Pokémon. I will finally be able to conduct my research on the Weather Pokémon."

Looking back and forth between the Red and Blue orbs, he grinned. "I don't care what happens to everyone else. I don't care what happens to the Pokémon, nor the people. All I care about is that I get to witness the legendary Pokémon with my own eyes; to see their power."

"I want to set them free."

* * *

**I know we haven't gotten to the AmourShipping yet, and I'm sorry I'm making y'all wait. But fear not, I promise it's coming soon.**

**Also, there's all kinds of timing inconsistencies, like with the days I mentioned in the first chapter, but I'm way too lazy to try to fix it now. Just know that the important shit is all there.**

**Song is: "High Touch", the Second Japanese Opening of the Diamond and Pearl series.**


	3. Chapter 3: Lightning

**Chapter 3: Lightning**

The next morning, after Ash and Dawn had caught up, everyone was meeting up in the lobby to take a submarine from the shore by Lilycove to Sootopolis City. As the students, their teacher and his wife, and even Dawn and Brock were preparing to leave, some of them couldn't help but notice the absence of a certain boy and his Pikachu.

Mallow looked around, Shaymin in her arms. "Hey, where's Ash?"

This caught the attention of the rest of the group, and they all scanned the lobby as well. "I don't see him anywhere." Lillie said.

"Hey guys! Sorry I'm late!"

Everyone turned to the hall where the rooms were, and saw Ash walking out with Pikachu on his shoulder, already prepared to leave. But something was different. He had changed his clothes. Instead of his normal baggy pants and t-shirt, he instead wore dark blue jeans, and a royal blue zip-up jacket with a black undershirt. He also wore red sneakers and black fingerless gloves. His hat looked very similar, though it was a slightly darker red than his normal one. He adjusted his hat by the brim and grinned at his friends.

Mallow couldn't help but blush a bit at the sight. The outfit complimented him much better than his normal one. Lana pointed. "What's with the clothes?"

"Oh, yeah! Well, it's just, I honestly got a little annoyed with the baggy pants, and I wanted a change, at least while we're here, and it's not as hot as it is in Alola. I had these from my last journey, so I figured I'd put 'em back on for a while." Ash said. Pikachu cried out in agreement.

"They look really good, Ash!" Mallow said, smiling.

Ash blushed slightly and rubbed under his nose. "Thanks. Well, what are we waiting for? Let's move it!"

Dawn fist pumped. "Yeah! I need to register as soon as possible, too! The deadline is later today!" Piplup let out a cry of agreement from her arms.

"We really should be going then. Alright, everyone, follow me!" Kukui announced.

"Yeah!" Everyone shouted in agreement.

As they left, Brock turned around and waved to Nurse Joy. "I'll be back in a couple days, Nurse Joy!"

The pink-haired nurse waved back, smiling. "Thanks for all of your help, Brock!"

As they all exited the Pokémon Center, Professor Kukui spoke up again. "Okay, everyone. Sootopolis City is sealed off to the outside by rock. We're going to be taking a submarine to get there. We'll go underneath the rocks, and rise up to the port in Sootopolis City. Follow me, the submarines are this way."

"Wow, that must be some natural formation. Why even build a city in such a location?" Lillie inquired.

"Well, Lillie, many people ask the same question. It is definitely odd when you think about it. But, there are legends in Hoenn that say that inside that rock formation, just outside Sootopolis City, lays a cave that houses the dormant legendary Pokémon, Groudon and Kyogre." Kukui said.

"Whoa, Kyogre?" Lana exclaimed.

"And Groudon too?" Kiawe chimed in.

The Professor nodded. "That's correct. Though it is only a legend. No one knows if it's really true or not. You see, the Pokémon supposedly sleep in a place that people can't actually see or reach. The legend states that either the Red Orb or the Blue Orb would be required to wake the sleeping Pokémon, and no one knows where they are or how to acquire them."

"This all sounds familiar…" Ash mumbled, scratching his chin. Pikachu agreed pensively. Brock looked at Ash, sweat-dropping and deciding not to add anything.

"So, maybe that's why they built Sootopolis. Perhaps, when the city was first built, people were attempting to uncover the mysteries of those Pokémon, and more and more people were coming to settle there, and eventually, Sootopolis was built." Burnet added.

"That makes sense to me!" Lillie said, writing down a few notes in her small notebook.

"That's a pretty incredible legend. Their power must be off the charts!" Sophocles exclaimed excitedly.

Mallow tapped on Dawn's shoulder and whispered to her. "Hey, Dawn. Random question, but is it just me, or does Ash look way better in these clothes than the other ones?"

Dawn looked pensive, whispering back. "I have to agree. I hate to admit it, but he does look kinda attractive in those clothes."

"Doesn't he? They make his normal clothes look way too baggy and weird!" Mallow agreed.

"Agreed. Hey, he wore a similar outfit in Sinnoh, too. But maybe he's just matured enough to where he actually looks good." Dawn laughed. "I honestly never thought I'd be saying something like this about Ash. I guess certain outfits just do him more favors than others."

The group finally made it to where the submarines were all docked, and Professor Kukui quickly got them all spots on the next one, set to leave very soon. The group boarded the submarine, which looked a lot like a subway of sorts on the inside. The few seats that were there were already taken, so everyone grabbed on the handles on the ceiling or the poles that were scattered throughout the interior. After about 5 more minutes, the door closed and they departed from the dock. It only took about 20 minutes for the subway to rise to the surface of the water, now in Sootopolis City. The door soon opened and signaled for everyone to exit. One by one, the passengers left the vehicle, and the group went off the main path to collect themselves.

"So this is Sootopolis City!" Mallow said.

"It's so amazing!" Dawn chimed in.

"Hey, Dawn. Aren't you forgetting something?" Ash poked her shoulder.

"Hm?" She turned to Ash, wondering what he meant. It hit her suddenly, and her eyes went wide. "Uh-oh! Quick, where's the Pokémon Center? I need to register!"

Kukui looked at the map on his tablet. "It's over that way."

"'Kay, gotta run! I'll meet you all there!" Dawn called out as she and Piplup took off in the direction of the Pokémon Center.

Ash turned to Brock. "That seems a little unlike Dawn to forget about registering."

"To be fair though, this is a pretty amazing city." Brock pointed out.

"It's so cool!" Sophocles agreed.

Everyone finally got a chance to look around at the city. Needless to say, it was bustling, busy on every corner. Tourists and Coordinators from all over the world had come to this one place to compete in or observe the Wallace Cup. And because it was to start the next day, it was getting close to what would be its busiest times of the next few days. People were out shopping, sightseeing, and more. The city itself wasn't as big as Lilycove City, but it was fairly large considering the fact that it was housed in a giant rock formation.

"Alright, gang. We're staying in an Inn for the next few nights, since the Pokémon Center is already booked for Coordinators. Brock, there's space for you too. As you can see, it's extra busy, so let's all make sure we stay close together. Don't let anyone get lost. Follow me!" Kukui told everyone.

"Yes sir!"

Everyone started to walk, following Professor Kukui and making sure to stay close together. Despite this, they found that the density of people was much higher than they had thought. They were constantly having to dodge oncoming people from many different directions.

Mallow looked around at all the people. She then walked over to Ash and took his arm. This caused Ash to turn his head to her and find her smiling at him. He gave her a bit of a questioning look.

"What? It's so we don't get separated!"

Lillie took Ash's other arm, smiling playfully. "You're such a gentleman, Ash!"

The two girls smiled up at him, while he sighed in playful defeat. He smiled down at the girls who had taken his arms. His friends got a chuckle out of the scene.

After navigating the whirlwind of people and finally arriving to and checking in at the Inn, they made their way to the Pokémon Center to meet Dawn. They found her waiting in the lobby, even though it was packed with Coordinators, all preparing for the Wallace Cup. Dawn stood up when she saw everyone come in.

"Hey guys!"

"Dawn! You all registered?" Ash asked her.

"Yep! I'm all set to go! We've been practicing some new combinations and everything!"

"Huh? You don't mean…" Ash began.

"Yep! The Wallace Cup is a Double Performance this year!" Dawn confirmed, winking.

"That's great news! That'll make the Contest a real spectacle for sure!" Brock chimed in.

"I'm so excited to see it!" Mallow exclaimed. Ash's classmates spoke out in agreement.

"So, the Contest's first round starts tomorrow; we should go sightseeing until dinner!" Dawn suggested.

"That sounds good! Everyone should try to stay in groups of three or more as you explore the city. Okay?" Professor Kukui asked.

"Right!" The students responded.

"Hey, Ash-" Mallow began.

"Dawn, Brock, let's go!" Ash said as he started forcefully pushing the two out of the front door.

"What's the hurry, Ash?" Dawn asked, confused.

"C'mon, quick! Let's hightail it!"

The students watched the three leave the Pokémon Center as fast as Ash could push them. The automatic door closed behind them.

Mallow turned to Lana and Lillie. "Oh well. Wanna go check out the shops, girls?"

"Sounds good!" Lana nodded.

"Let us go, then!" Lillie said. The three girls soon departed the Pokémon Center as well.

Sophocles and Kiawe turned to their teacher. Kukui nodded. "You two can go. I know you'll be okay."

"Thanks, Professor." Kiawe said. The rest of the group left the Center to go sightseeing.

* * *

"Okay, Sylveon! It's time I gave you and everyone else a brush before the Contest tomorrow! It's our biggest Contest so far, so we have to make sure we look our best and give it all we've got!"

"Syl!"

A young lady sat down in the lobby of the Sootopolis City Pokémon Center with a Sylveon on her lap, bringing out her brush from her backpack. She immediately began brushing. She had dirty blonde hair that fell down just above her shoulders. She also had the brightest of blue eyes, the most beautiful of smiles, and the most caring of hearts.

"Let's hightail it!"

The girl's attention was grabbed by a seemingly familiar voice by the entrance of the Pokémon Center. She saw a brief flash of royal blue and red before the door shut. She stared, zoning out. Her eyes widened.

"Syl?" The Fairy-type looked up at her trainer with a worried expression.

The girl continued to stare at the door. "... was that…?"

* * *

Ash sighed in relief. "I managed to escape."

"Escape? Escape what?" Dawn asked Ash.

"Escape Mallow, that's what. She always forces me to go shopping with them and carry all their bags. It's awful."

Dawn gasped. "Oh, I get it! So that's what she meant when she told me you escaped."

"Huh?"

"See, when I met Mallow, Lana, and Lillie, I learned they were your friends because Mallow mentioned to them that you had 'escaped'. But I didn't pay attention to that part, I was a little busy being shocked that they knew you, and that you were here." Dawn said.

"Shopping with girls can be a rough time for sure." Brock said. "Sometimes shopping is a good thing, but if you're stuck with a bunch of girls, it is certainly not that. At least, for us guys."

"Yeah, I figured that one out the hard way." Ash said.

"I used to drag you both shopping all the time in Sinnoh. And I'd force you to carry my bags too!" Dawn smirked.

"Maybe so, but even that doesn't compare to shopping with those girls. When all three of them are together, there's no stopping their shopping sprees. Individually, they probably wouldn't be so bad. But that…" Ash shivered.

"Well, either way, it's nice to have our group back together! Dawn, Ash and I are so excited to watch you compete again. It'll be just like old times!" Brock said.

"Yeah! We know you'll be great, Dawn!" Ash added excitedly.

"Pika!" The Pokémon chimed in from Ash's shoulder.

She smiled and grabbed both of their shoulders. "Thanks, guys! Now, c'mon, let's go shopping!"

Ash and Brock looked at each other in horror as Dawn dragged them both away towards the shops.

* * *

"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, one and all… to the annual Wallace Cup!"

The huge crowd gathered in Sootopolis Stadium cheered.

"It's the only contest all year that brings coordinators from all around the world to one place to compete against each other!" Vivian announced excitedly.

"Now, of course, allow me the honor of introducing our host, former gym leader right here in Sootopolis City, and current Contest Master: Wallace!"

The Contest stage was surrounded almost entirely by water, minus the entrance ramp from the curtains in the back. There were fountains scattered across the water as well. Quickly, the water began to shift, change shape, almost morphing around something; it formed a gorgeous spiral for a huge snake-like creature to leap out of the water, providing sparkling water effects to the Pokémon's entrance. That Pokémon was a Milotic. It landed perfectly on the stage. It then started to move its tail in a circle, creating a tornado of water with its tail that stretched above the highest point of the open stadium. As its tail began to slow down, a shadow appeared in the water tornado, floating down towards the stage. Milotic dispersed the tornado, sending water back out to the pond surrounding the stage. The shadow was Wallace, who had elegantly landed on the stage with Milotic's long tail surrounding him. The entire crowd cheered especially loud for the namesake of the Contest. The loudest screams were noticeably female.

"Wow, that Wallace sure knows how to make an entrance!" Ash commented.

"That was like nothing I've ever seen! So graceful! So elegant!" Mallow agreed. Shaymin agreed from her lap.

"His Milotic is so gorgeous!" Lana added. Sandy also cried out from her lap.

"And he's still as popular as ever." Brock said.

"Thank you all for coming to see this year's Wallace Cup! I'm once again honored to serve as a special guest judge for the entirety of the tournament. Here's to another great Contest!" He waved to the crowd as the large majority of girls had hearts replace their eyes.

"Wallace, if you please." Vivian implored the Contest Master. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the Wallace Cup ribbon and held it out. "And, as always, the winner of the Contest will receive the Wallace Cup ribbon, which counts as a win in any region! It's a highly coveted prize that only the most talented of Coordinators have been known to receive!"

The crowd cheered again as the camera got a close-up on the ribbon and its intricate design.

"Now, let's not waste any time; let us begin the first round: the Performance Round!" Vivian announced excitedly. "This year's Wallace Cup is a double performance. Coordinators will have full use of the stage to show off their Pokémon's unique characteristics, moves, and beauty in the most effective way possible. There will be no scoring for each performance; the judges will be deciding at the end of the performances which sixteen Coordinators will move on to the Battle Round!"

"Now, let's start with our first performance: it's a former winner of the Wallace Cup, daughter of Top Coordinator Johanna, hailing from Twinleaf Town in the Sinnoh Region: it's Dawn!"

"Wow, Dawn's up first!" Lillie said excitedly.

"Go for it, Dawn!" Mallow and Ash cheered.

Dawn, wearing a pink mid-length dress, ran down towards the stage from the now open curtains. "Piplup and Bellossom! Spotlight!"

She threw two sealed Pokéballs into the air to reveal her partner and her brand new Pokémon, with the Penguin Pokémon getting water droplet effects upon its entrance, and the Flower Pokémon getting rose petals with its entrance.

"Wow, I didn't know Dawn had a Bellossom!" Brock noted.

"Yeah, that's a new one on me too." Ash nodded.

"Hey, Ash." Mallow poked his arm. "What was with all those effects just now?"

"Oh! Those are Pokéball Seals! Coordinators use them all the time; it's pretty much an unsaid rule of Pokémon Contests to have your Pokémon make flashy entrances using Seals. There's a bunch of different types and styles depending on the kind of effect you want." Ash said. "They're basically just Pokeball-shaped capsules; you put your Pokeballs in them, and when you release your Pokémon, the effect of the seal kicks in, adding whatever the effect you wanted was to that flash of light you see when a Pokémon normally comes out of its ball."

"I see! So Dawn coordinated her seals with her Pokémon's types! Piplup got a water effect, and Bellossom got a petal effect!" Lillie concluded.

Ash nodded. "That's right, Lillie."

"Piplup, spin and use Bubblebeam!"

The Penguin Pokémon followed the command, using Bubblebeam upward while spinning, sending a bunch of bright blue bubbles scattered across the stage area in the air.

"Now, Bellossom, Petal Dance!"

Bellossom began to dance, and while doing so, sent bright pink petals from its head and into the bubbles that were still floating around the stadium. The bubbles were now all filled with petals, showing off the beauty of a grass and water combination.

"Incredible! Bellossom's Petal Dance has just filled all of Piplup's bubbles! This is gorgeous! The Wallace Cup is already off to an amazing start!"

"Wow! So pretty!" Mallow said.

"Water types and Grass types can really work well together!" Lana said. She and Mallow turned to each other and giggled.

"Piplup, Whirlpool!"

Piplup's body started to glow as it created a huge whirlpool above its head. In doing this, it caught all of descending bubbles, which caused the petals to start circulating throughout the whirlpool.

"Bellossom, Sunny Day!"

Bellossom focused the sun's rays onto Piplup's Whirlpool with the petals in it, causing the water and the petals to all glisten in the bright sunlight.

"And Bellossom's Sunny Day gives the already gorgeous combo move a gorgeous glisten! It really shows off the different abilities of these two great Pokémon!" Vivian chimed in.

"Now, Bellossom, Energy Ball!"

Bellossom sent a glowing green ball of energy through the center of the whirlpool, causing it to dissipate and send water particles and petals all across the stadium. The Energy Ball seemed to hesitate at the height of its arc.

"Piplup, Drill Peck!"

Piplup leaped off the ground and began to spin rapidly. He went straight up and into the Energy Ball, which caused it to break and send bright green particles around the stage. Piplup landed next to Bellossom, in front of Dawn, and Dawn and Piplup posed while Bellossom danced.

"Finished!"

The whole stadium full of people cheered loudly.

"Dawn was so great!" Ash exclaimed, turning to Brock.

"Yeah, she was! That was classic Dawn, but with a new grass-type twist." Brock agreed.

"That was so unbelievably amazing! I can't wait to see the rest of the performances!" Mallow exclaimed.

"I agree! If all of them are as amazing as Dawn's, this should be an incredible day!" Kiawe agreed.

"Truly a magnificent sight to behold. Dawn is surely one talented coordinator." Professor Kukui noted.

A few other coordinators went through their performances, before Vivian announced a relatively familiar name. "And now, for our next Coordinator: Jessalina!"

Ash's attention was caught. "Hey, I remember Jessalina."

Brock nodded in agreement. "Yeah, me too. She seems like such a mess that I can hardly believe she's still competing."

"So she has a Mimikyu now, huh…" Ash looked down to Pikachu, who was on his lap, raising an eyebrow. Pikachu shrugged. Ash shrugged too. "Nah, I'm just crazy."

More and more coordinators came onto the stage, all of them with wonderful performances in their own right. For the ones seeing a Contest in person for the first time, it was constant amazement. Coordinators had such impressive ways to show off their Pokémon using moves and even the water surrounding the stage. Even Ash and Brock were impressed with the level of talent at this Wallace Cup. The judges seemed to have their work cut out for them.

After a little intermission with half the coordinators finished with their performances, more coordinators came to perform. After the audience had settled back into the rhythm of the performances, Ash was chatting a bit with Brock before his attention was caught by a familiar name that he had thought maybe, just maybe, would be called sometime today.

"And now, hailing all the way from Vaniville Town in the Kalos Region, it's Serena!"

Ash's eyes widened. He looked toward the stage to see the curtains open to reveal the very girl he had been thinking about. She was wearing the first dress she got in Kalos; the one she received from her mother. Her hair had grown a bit; it just about touched her shoulders now. Serena smiled as she began to run out towards the stage. Even from far away, without seeing the big screen, Ash felt her smile reach his heart. It was easily his favorite smile. He felt her spark again. He stared, in awe; probably for a bit too long, because both Brock and Pikachu noticed Ash's blank expression and glistening eyes. Brock smiled and left it alone, deciding not to inquire about anything just yet.

Ash finally smiled, petting his partner's head. "It's really her, Pikachu."

"Alright, Mudkip and Pichu, come out!"

The two Pokémon came on stage and posed, with both a water droplet effect and a lightning effect.

"Pichu, start out with Charm!"

Pichu jumped into the air and let out a bunch of bright pink hearts, scattered throughout the stadium. It was so similar to Piplup's Bubblebeam; it was almost as if it was possible to reach out and touch them.

"Mudkip, Aqua Tail!"

Mudkip jumped too, then its tail started to glow a brilliant blue as it sent a wave of water in a huge circle around the stadium. As it made contact with Pichu's Charm, it gave the hearts a brilliant blue glow around the edges.

As this was happening, Serena and Pichu were dancing together; just like Ash remembered Serena would practice with her Pokemon back in Kalos, and now they were recreating it for the Contests.

"Wow, that Aqua Tail is just gorgeous! And it's giving those hearts a beautiful blue glow!" Vivian exclaimed. "And there it is; for those of you who have never seen Serena compete here in Hoenn before, she brings the wonderful and unique style of Kalos Pokémon Showcases to her performances. Those are dance moves you'd only see in a Kalos Performance!"

"Pichu, use Electro Ball!"

Pichu jumped again, and sent a yellow and white ball of energy forward and upward, almost towards the audience.

"Now, Mudkip, Ice Beam!"

Mudkip obliged and used Ice Beam on the Electro Ball, which froze the Electric-type move in place. The ice almost immediately shattered into frozen particles of ice, surrounded by the yellow energy of the shadow ball. The energy reflected in the ice, giving it a brilliant yellow glow.

"Wow, that's so beautiful!" Lillie said in awe. Snowy agreed from her lap.

"Now, Mudkip, Water Pledge!"

Mudkip danced a bit close to the center of the stage, before jumping and slamming its front legs down onto the stage. The water surrounding the stage started to be disturbed slightly in certain places. Soon, those spots erupted into huge geysers of water.

"Pichu, finish up with Thundershock!"

Pichu leapt up into the air and fired its Thundershock at the top of all the pillars of water. It glowed a bright yellow at the very center of the semi-circle made by the pillars. As the electricity hit the pillars, it began to run down the pillars, visibly giving off a spark effect through the entirety of each pillar, with Pichu still glowing bright in the middle. Pichu stopped its attack and the pillars of water soon stopped moving and they all collapsed back down to the water around the stage.

Pichu landed back next to Mudkip, before the two Pokémon danced a bit, while Serena twirled around once, and then everyone posed. "And that's it!"

The entire audience applauded for Serena's performance. It wasn't every day that people get to see a primarily Kalos-inspired performance. It was unique and beautiful.

The girl on stage scanned the crowd as much as she could, looking for a certain someone. Though she saw a few people standing up for her, the audience was far too large to locate any one specific person. She smiled regardless, though she couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed.

Ash's face showed a caring smile. He was also applauding for Serena. He couldn't take his eyes off of her. She waved out to the crowd before retreating back to the other side of the curtains.

Brock finally turned back to Ash, tapping him on the shoulder. "So, Ash, do you… know her?"

Ash continued to look at the place where Serena had gone back into the curtains, still smiling warmly. He pet Pikachu's head a little, causing the mouse to look up at his trainer and smile knowingly. Ash's look then became a bit more of a determined one, though obviously still a happy one. He stood up, and began to walk out of the row of seats where he and his friends were sitting. The rest of his friends noticed this too, and looked at Ash questioningly.

"Ash? Where are you going?" Mallow asked him, slightly worried.

"Ash!" Kukui tried to call out to Ash, but Ash had already made up his mind. He looked over to Pikachu on his shoulder, and grinned. Pikachu grinned back, nodding.

_'Right. It's time to see her again.'_

* * *

**Cute reunion next time, promise!**

**Felt like I should address a question I got a few times in the last chapter; no, none of the Alolan girls actually like Ash. Lana definitely doesn't. Lillie sees Ash as a proper older brother figure (you know, not edgy); someone to look up to, who she can also tease and have fun with. And Mallow just thinks Ash is kinda cute. That's all.**

**Also, I wish I could've come up with better Contest ideas, but I couldn't really think of anything to do. I know the point is to show off the Pokémon themselves, but it's a lot harder than I thought to come up with stuff. Hopefully I'll improve in the coming chapters. And yes, I know Pichu can't actually learn Electro Ball, but the idea behind giving Serena Pichu in the first place was to remind Serena of Ash, so I like the idea that they have similar moves.**

**One last thing; I actually am not including any of Dawn's rivals, May's rivals, or even introducing a new proper rival for Serena. My main reasons for doing this are because, one, I'm already having trouble giving lines to all the characters I already have, and two, I want to emphasize Ash and Serena's budding relationship, without too much interference from friends (yet). I have an OC that I liked from a previous story I tried to write, but I ultimately decided against using her as Serena's rival just because of the density of important characters is already very high. I will be introducing someone, but it's not really a rival in the traditional sense. You're just gonna have to wait until next week to find out what I mean by that.**

**Song: "Lightning" by State Champs from their 2018 Album "Living Proof"**


	4. Chapter 4: Still Into You

**Chapter 4: Still Into You**

"I'm sorry sir, we only allow friends of the coordinators into the backstage area. Are you a friend of one of the coordinators participating?"

"Yes sir, her name is Serena."

"Hm… okay. You may go. But do not misbehave. We have security back here as well. If your actions are deemed obnoxious or rude, you may be thrown out. Understand?"

"Yes sir."

Ash and his partner passed through the security gate and arrived in the backstage area of the Sootopolis Stadium. He walked down the hall, passing by coordinators and friends as he searched for the room that connects to the stage entrance, where most of the coordinators tend to stay. He eventually found a room filled with coordinators and their Pokémon, with televisions scattered across the room, as well as a few in the center, facing different directions, all showing the live contest feed. They all showed that the judges were currently in the middle of discussing the results of the first round, and all the coordinators seemed to be out, waiting impatiently for the results to be announced. Ash immediately started looking around, searching for the honey blonde.

Dawn noticed Ash come in. She turned to him, holding Piplup in her arms, Bellossom at her feet. "Hey, Ash! What's going on?"

Ash and Pikachu turned to Dawn and waved. "Oh, hey Dawn! You did really great!"

"Thanks, Ash!" She smiled. Ash continued looking around, causing Dawn to tilt her head slightly, puzzled. "What are you looking for?"

Ash didn't stop looking around, but he smiled lightly. "A friend."

Dawn blinked a couple times at the vague answer, staring at him in confusion. "Uh… maybe check the makeup room?"

Dawn pointed over to a door towards a nearby corner of the room, which had a label next to it that showed it was the makeup room. Ash nodded. "Worth a shot."

Ash wandered over the door, dodging all the coordinators and stopping in front of the door. He took a deep breath.

"Pika." Ash's partner said from his shoulder, rubbing the back of his trainer's neck gently, comforting him. Ash smiled at him.

"Thanks, Pikachu. You're right." He turned back to the door and opened it gently.

"...he's here. I know it." Ash heard a familiar female voice say from inside the room as he opened the door.

As soon as he got a full view of the room, he saw all the huge mirrors and decorations that surrounded them. As he closed the door behind him, he saw that all but one of the mirror stations were empty; one seat held a girl his age with honey blonde hair down to her shoulders. The girl was wearing a pink and red medium-length dress that exposed her shoulders. She was petting a Sylveon who sat on the floor next to her. A Braixen also held her paw on her trainer's shoulder. They all heard the door open, and turned toward the sound. Ash smiled when he saw this scene, reminding him of his time in Kalos. The girl and her partners all heard the door open, and turned toward the sound. The brightest of blue eyes turned to look up at him.

Ash immediately grinned his signature grin. "There you are."

He held up his hand in greeting, mimicked by his partner on his shoulder.

"Hey, Serena."

The girl gasped, putting her hand over her mouth as sheer emotion flooded out of her. She stared right at the boy of her dreams, dressed in the same clothes he wore when they travelled together. Her eyes started sparkling, and when she moved her hand away from her mouth, it revealed the loving smile on her pretty face. He could almost see the joy and emotion in her bright blue eyes.

"Ash…"

Serena immediately stood up out of her chair and ran toward Ash, wearing a loving smile. Pikachu quickly hopped off of Ash's shoulder. She held out her arms and jumped at him. Ash caught her in his arms, bringing her close to him while she put her arms around his neck, resting them on his shoulders. He used her momentum to spin her around once, before placing her back on the ground delicately. As her movement stopped, her head found a resting place on one of his shoulders, snuggling into that spot comfortably. He rested his head on top of hers, rubbing her back lightly. Serena let out a sigh of content and happiness, her smile still very present on her face. She began to tear up slightly out of sheer joy.

Pikachu waved over at Sylveon and Braixen, also wearing a huge smile. Sylveon pranced over to the yellow mouse and happily nuzzled Pikachu's cheek, causing the mouse to blush slightly, appreciating the affection. Pikachu nuzzled her back. Braixen reached down to give the electric-type an affectionate hug, one which Pikachu tried to return, though limited by his relatively short arms. Sylveon wrapped her feelers around them both, creating a group hug.

"I… I can't believe it's really you." Serena said, nuzzling more into Ash's shoulder. She took in the feeling of being snuggled into Ash as he rubbed her back. It was the most content and happy she'd felt in a very long time.

"It's so great to see you again." Ash said softly, enjoying the moment alone with the honey blonde. Having such a whirlwind of a couple days, he felt at peace with her in his arms. It was finally peaceful. Serene.

After a while, the two backed away ever so slightly from each other, both still smiling widely. Ash kept his arms around her while she slid her hands down to his chest. She blinked away her tears, staring straight ahead, eyes level with Ash's jawline. She looked up to meet his eyes, smiling. "You're taller than me now."

Ash chuckled. "Is that an issue?"

Serena shook her head, still smiling. "Of course not. This feels more right."

Ash took one of his hands back from around Serena and removed his hat, dropping it on the ground next to him. Serena briefly gave Ash a look of confusion, keeping her hands placed on his chest. He then placed that hand on the back side of Serena's head. He leaned his head forward slightly so that their foreheads were touching. They both closed their eyes in content. Ash spoke again, softly. "I've missed you, y'know."

Though she felt her face burn red, Serena responded without hesitation. "I've missed you too."

The Pokémon looked up at their trainers, all smiling. Ash brought his head back as the two finally separated and opened their eyes. Serena took his hands, not ready to separate from him entirely. Ash smiled as their fingers interlocked. She looked back up at him, smiling bright. "What are you even doing here?"

Ash grinned playfully. "I came to see you perform, obviously."

Serena blushed and giggled, rolling her eyes. "Sure, Ash. There's no way you would've known when the Wallace Cup was happening and gotten here in time with how you are. You can't stop moving, doing things."

Ash chuckled. "You caught me. My class is on a field trip from the Alola region."

Serena raised her eyebrows. "You? In class?"

"If you told me that when we were travelling together, I wouldn't have believed it either. But our class is special. So is the Alola region. They don't have gyms or anything, and this year is gonna be the first time ever holding a Pokémon League there." Ash admitted. "It's tropical; you would love it."

"Aw, how very considerate of you, Ash. I'll have to come visit sometime." Serena winked.

"And what about you? How are your contests going?" Ash asked her.

"Great! I've got three ribbons so far."

"Well, your performance earlier was amazing. I'm sure you'll make it to round two." Ash said confidently. Serena smiled at him gratefully, appreciating his confidence in her.

"You look really pretty, by the way."

"Oh!" She felt Ash let go of one of her hands and lift the other up above over her head. She instinctively twirled around once, like a formal dance, her dress' skirt lifting ever so slightly and twirling with her. Serena blushed deep red, but composed herself. "Thank you, Ash."

Ash let go of her hand, still grinning.

"Pikachu pi!" Pikachu cried out happily, jumping up towards Serena. The honey-blonde caught Ash's partner in her arms, smiling wide and giggling.

"Hi, Pikachu! I've missed you, too!" She hugged Pikachu close to her, bringing him towards her face for him to nuzzle. She giggled again as he did so, enjoying his affectionate gesture and the feeling of his soft fur.

Ash smiled and knelt down, picking up his hat and placing it back on his head. Sylveon smiled and approached him, wrapping her feelers around his arm.

"Hey there, Sylveon." Ash smiled at the fairy-type and scratched her head and pet down her back. Sylveon closed her eyes in content, nudging Ash's leg affectionately.

Still knelt down, Ash looked towards the fox Pokémon and offered his hands to her, which she happily accepted, placing her paws against his hands. Ash closed his hands around her paws.

"Braixen! How are you?" He smiled at the fire-type, who responded happily.

Ash stood back up to find Pikachu comfortably on Serena's shoulder, still nuzzling her face affectionately. Serena was scratching Pikachu's head. Sylveon walked between the two and wrapped her feelers around both trainers' arms, causing the two to look down at it and then at each other. They both smiled, with Serena blushing slightly.

Suddenly, the door to the makeup room opened. "Ash? Are you in here?"

Ash and Serena turned back towards the door and saw Dawn peek her head in. She looked at Ash and smiled. "Hey! There you are."

Ash gave her a questioning look. "Hey Dawn, what's up?"

Serena gasped. "You're that girl who performed first with the Piplup and Bellossom! You were amazing!"

Dawn smiled. "Thank you! I recognize you as the girl with the Mudkip and Pichu with the Kalos-style performance. I've never seen anything like that before, you were amazing too!"

"Thanks!"

"Serena, this is Dawn. Just like I travelled with you in Kalos, I travelled with Dawn in Sinnoh." Ash introduced them.

Serena waved. "Hi! It's very nice to meet you, Dawn."

"Back at you, Serena!" Dawn waved back. "Oh yeah! C'mon, they're about to announce the results of the first round! Get out here, quick!"

Dawn left the door open as she rushed back to the center of the main room to watch the TV. Ash smiled over at Serena, still with Pikachu on her shoulder. "Well? Let's go, Serena! We don't wanna miss that!"

Serena nodded. "Right!"

They both walked out of the makeup room and found Dawn staring up at one of the monitors in the center of the room. Ash and Serena went over and stood next to her, Sylveon's ribbons still around both trainers' arms. The four judges seemed to be finalizing their discussion, before separating after a moment and nodding at Vivian.

"Okay, ladies and gentlemen, the judges have made their decisions!"

Serena looked up at the screen in suspense, holding a hand close to her heart. Sylveon lifted a paw and touched Serena's leg with it. Serena looked down at it in surprise, but then nodded, slowly regaining her confidence. Braixen placed a paw on her trainer's shoulder. Pikachu nudged her face lightly. They were all showing that they believed in her.

"Serena."

The girl turned to Ash, who nodded, grinning confidently. Serena's smile slowly returned to her face, and she nodded back.

"The sixteen coordinators who will be moving to the second round of this year's Wallace Cup are… on the screen now!" Vivian exclaimed, motioning up to the big screen in the stadium.

The sixteen faces showed up clearly on the monitors. Dawn was there on the top left, while Serena had also made it, her face showing up towards the bottom right.

"We made it!"

Dawn and Serena exclaimed simultaneously, though Dawn was more excited while Serena was more relieved. Ash grinned again, looking over to his Kalos companion to see her smiling with her hand placed over her heart in relief.

"The second round matches are to be exactly what you see on screen right now!"

Bracket lines showed up on the screen, connecting the coordinators in groups of two without changing the order that they were displayed. "Round 2 will begin tomorrow promptly at 10 AM! Until then, have a wonderful evening, and we will see everyone back here tomorrow!"

"So that means… if I make it all the way to the finals… Dawn and I will battle." Serena said to herself quietly, looking over at Ash's Sinnoh companion. She didn't know much about the bluenette, other than that she was good friends with Ash, but she also knew that she was very talented. She would need to be prepared before tomorrow.

Then she looked over at Pikachu on her shoulder, then back at Ash, and her face relaxed into a small smile. She decided that she would worry about all that later. She scratched under Pikachu's head, who smiled back at her and let out a light cry of content in response. After all, it was only the one person that she missed more than anyone who had just suddenly re-entered her life, if only for a brief period of time.

"Ash, I'm gonna go see if I can find Brock and the others, you coming?" Dawn turned to him.

"Yeah, go on ahead. I'll catch up, just give me a second." Ash turned his head to look at her. Dawn nodded. Ash then turned back to his Kalos companion. "You'll come too, right, Serena?"

"Hm?" Serena looked to Ash in surprise, blushing lightly. "You want me to come with you?"

"Of course! You're here; it'd be great to catch up and spend some more time with you."

Serena's blush got darker. She smiled and nodded. "I would love to come with you, Ash."

People were filing out of the main room, many disappointed and some happy or relieved. There were so many coordinators surrounding them that Serena didn't notice someone walk up to them.

"Well, well, I didn't know you had a Pikachu, Serena."

Serena's face turned immediately changed to one of slight fear and nervousness. She turned around to see a boy slightly older than she was, with short, slicked-back blonde hair and a handsome face. His frame was more muscular than Ash's, and also stood an inch or two taller than Ash. He wore a white tuxedo with a yellow button-down and white tie.

"Uh… hey, Austin…" she said rather unenthusiastically, her face indicating that she would really rather not have to interact with this guy. Even Sylveon and Braixen shot angry looks at the boy.

"You look beautiful, as always, Serena." He winked at her, as if trying to get her to swoon over his looks, attempting to take one of her hands before she retracted it to avoid him. "Please, tell me about your new Pikachu."

"Um-"

"The Pikachu's mine."

Ash walked past Serena and stood next to her, as if preparing to defend her. His face was one of anger, a look similar to what he would give Team Rocket. Pikachu jumped from Serena's shoulder back onto Ash's shoulder and put on a slightly angry frown as well. Serena put on a smile of relief at seeing Ash, and she blushed, knowing that he was still always prepared to protect her. The blonde boy noticed Serena's blush and genuine smile; something he had never seen from her, at least while he was around. He looked over at Ash and frowned angrily.

"And you are?"

The blonde boy attempted to regain his composure. "Austin."

"Ash. You already know my partner."

"Well, it's nice to meet you." Austin said, very clearly not meaning that. He turned to the girl by Ash's side. "Serena, I would be delighted if you would accompany me to dinner tonight."

Serena's look of discomfort intensified. She looked up at Ash next to her and then back at Austin. She started shaking ever so slightly. "Well… you see-"

"Look, dude. I don't like the way you're making my friend uncomfortable. I normally try to give people a chance, but you've clearly done something to make her not like you very much. Can't you see that she doesn't really want to talk to you?" Ash said, his voice firm and strong. He put his arm in front of Serena as if to protect her from danger.

Austin scoffed. "She's very clearly not feeling well right now. Otherwise, she would be delighted to see me."

Ash narrowed his eyes, not even pretending to buy it. "Somehow, I don't think that's true."

He looked over to his friend and saw that she had her eyes closed and a determined look on her face, as if steeling herself to speak up. She suddenly grabbed Ash's arm with both of hers, pushing herself close to him.

"Austin, I will not go anywhere with you. In fact, I'm already going with someone else." Serena smiled happily up at Ash, who looked down at her, surprised at first, but then grinned back at her.

Austin's face turned to one of rage for a split second before he composed himself again. He made a snarky smile. "Suit yourself. Hopefully we get to meet in the semifinals so I can show you the effects of hanging around the wrong people."

Austin walked out of the room, giving Ash a nasty look as he passed. Serena kept herself glued to Ash's arm the whole time. She sighed in relief as he finally left the room. She smiled at Ash again. "Thanks for that, Ash."

Ash smiled at her. "No problem, Serena. What's that guy's deal, anyway?"

Serena frowned. "He comes from a very privileged family. He's never seen something he wanted that he didn't get, aside from maybe a Contest Ribbon or two. That includes girls too. He asked me on a date when we met a contest a while back, and I declined. It must've been one of the only times a girl has ever said no to him, because he flipped out and started harassing me, and in public too, in one of these rooms. And no one could really stand up to him and security wouldn't throw him out, because his family has a lot of influence."

"Since then, he always continues to ask me out, hoping that if he keeps pestering me, I'll eventually say yes. I really want nothing to do with him. But I'm afraid if I directly say no again, he'll harass me again. I've been doing my best to avoid him, but he always seems to find me. But it went much more smoothly with you around. Thank you, Ash." Serena said gratefully, letting go of his arm.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that, Serena." Ash brought her into another hug. He started to rub her back softly again in an attempt to comfort her. Serena was surprised at first but quickly buried her face in his shoulder again, wrapping her arms around him. She began to smile, still loving every second of snuggling into Ash's jacket.

"Don't worry, Ash. It's not your fault."

"I'll make sure he doesn't get too close to you."

Serena smiled, pushing away slightly from Ash. She shook her head. "That's okay. I'll be fine, I promise."

Ash looked down at her. "Are you sure?"

Serena nodded. "I want to be able to tell him off myself. I need to be able to defend myself in situations other than just with that guy. You've helped me get my confidence back, now I can take it from here."

Ash smiled at her. That was one thing he liked about her; she was independent and strong-willed. And when either one of them was down, the other would pick them back up. But he would still never hesitate to protect her from any kind of danger she might be in.

They broke their hug, and Serena returned her Pokémon and motioned to the door. "C'mon, we should go quick to meet up with Dawn and the rest of your friends, right?"

Ash smiled and nodded. "Yeah. Let's go!"

Serena nodded happily and turned to the door before she heard Ash speak again.

"Here."

She turned back to Ash to see that he had his arm held out towards her. She looked up at him in surprise. Ash winked. "There's probably some big crowds out there. It's so you don't get lost."

Serena blushed slightly. "You don't mind?"

Ash shook his head. "Of course not. M'lady."

The last bit, although playful, caused Serena to blush even more. She giggled at Ash's antics and took his arm. "You're such a gentleman, Ash."

Ash chuckled at hearing the familiar phrase said a bit more seriously. He rubbed the back of his next with his free hand. "Well, you know. I just don't want us to get separated out there."

Serena smiled sweetly at him. "I appreciate it."

"So, let's get moving!"

"Mm-hm!"

* * *

"Ash!"

"There you are. You should really talk to us next time you get up randomly to go somewhere!" Mallow said pointedly.

Ash's face turned red slightly as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, sorry about that, guys. But, I brought a friend!"

"Ash!"

The honey-blonde finally caught up with him. "You can't just take off like that! You left me all alone, I could've gotten lost!" Serena pouted.

Ash laughed nervously. He looked over to Pikachu on his shoulder. "I just can't win, can I?"

Brock immediately recognized the girl as the one that it seemed like Ash had known. And he had been right; Ash did know her.

Both Dawn and Serena were still in their dresses, as no opportunity had been presented to change out of them. It was a little awkward for them to look so formal in casual situations, but they were both used to it.

Lillie pointed at the girl next to Ash. "I recognize you! You're the girl with the Mudkip and Pichu!"

Serena nodded happily, humming in confirmation. Ash motioned to her. "Everyone, this is Serena. She was with me during my journey through the Kalos region."

Serena bowed politely. "It's very nice to meet more of Ash's friends! A friend of his is a friend of mine."

"Hi there, Serena! My name is Lillie!"

"I'm Lana!"

"I'm Sophocles!"

"I'm Kiawe."

"I'm Mallow!"

Ash leaned in towards Serena. "Those five are my classmates."

Serena nodded. "I see!"

"It's very nice to meet you, young lady. I'm Ash's teacher, Professor Kukui. This here is my wife, Professor Burnet."

"Hello!"

Serena nodded, smiling.

"Hi Serena, my name is Brock! I travelled with Ash for quite a long time. Any embarrassing stories you wanna know about him, I've got them all." Brock said, grinning.

Serena giggled. "I might have to take you up on that offer, Brock."

"I hope you don't mind that we have such a big group, Serena." Ash said rather nervously.

Serena shook her head, smiling cutely. "Of course not! I was honestly so surprised when you said you were attending school, so it's great to meet your classmates and some of your old friends too."

"Yeah, it feels like three different worlds are colliding for me right now." Ash chuckled nervously.

"Serena, you will join us for dinner, won't you?" Professor Burnet inquired.

Serena nodded happily. "I would love to!"

"Great! We have reservations for a table big enough for all of us; let's get moving quick, everyone!" Professor Kukui announced.

"Um…" Dawn began, getting the Professor's attention. "You don't think Serena and I could have a quick moment to change out of our dresses, would you?"

"Hm? Oh, yes, of course, girls. Go right ahead. We'll be waiting right here for you." Kukui agreed.

"Thank you, Professor!" Dawn said happily. She took Serena's hand. "C'mon, let's go quick, Serena."

Serena nodded, slightly puzzled. "Right."

As they both ran off in the direction of the changing rooms, Brock looked over at Ash to see him watching Serena with a smile on his face. It was completely unlike Ash to pay so much attention to a girl for no particular reason. He knew something was going on there. He was determined to get to the bottom of it.

* * *

"So, Serena, you and Ash seem really close, huh?"

"Huh?" Serena was caught off-guard by the question. The two girls were in adjacent changing rooms, so they could very easily hear each other while they were changing. Luckily, no one else was around them to overhear. "Well, I mean, I guess so…"

"Ash seemed really happy to see you. And you were smiling pretty much the whole time. Even your Pokémon were happy to see him." Dawn said.

"I'm surprised you noticed all of that, Dawn." Serena admitted, blushing. Even though she knew nobody could see her right now, she still couldn't help but blush at the idea of her and Ash being extra close.

Dawn giggled. "You can't hide anything from me, girl."

Serena blushed turned darker. For one, she was embarrassed that Dawn had noticed her evident happiness around Ash, but she was also relieved that Dawn was quite clearly treating here like a friend already, even though they barely knew each other. She knew that she could trust Dawn, even despite not knowing her well.

"We'll have a chat later." Dawn said as she and Serena both exited their rooms. Dawn winked at Serena. "You look cute! For now, let's head back to the group."

Serena smiled and nodded. Maybe Dawn would be able to help her somehow.

* * *

"Sir, we've arrived in Sootopolis City."

"Good. It is only a matter of time now. Soon, I will reawaken the legendary Pokémon of the Hoenn Region. I cannot wait to see them with my very own eyes. To witness their power."

"If all of Hoenn perishes as a result; then so be it."

* * *

**Hope that reunion was cute enough for you! Sorry that like, nothing much besides that actually happened in this chapter. I feel like too many FanFics focus too much on all the drama of relationships, or just straight up take it way too far, too soon. Like, your favorite Pokémon couple will reunite and all of a sudden Ash is professing his love for the girl. Like "HEYHEYWHOAHOA HOLD UP I just got here okay calm down". You know how it is.**

**So, I'm sorry, but Ash and Serena immediately making out was never gonna happen. I take pride in my character work; and guess what? Ash is not at all a romantic. He's definitely a very nice guy. But he's not at all a romantic. Serena is certainly more so than Ash, but still not a huge romantic or anything. They're both pretty straightforward and down-to-earth. I'm also not at all interested in romantic tension and drama. So basically what I'm saying is, there's gonna be a lot more snuggling and playful flirting, and a lot less making out. Sorry?**

**Random site note: I actually get a kick out of the dynamic between Pikachu and Ash's friends. Like, Pikachu getting friendly with Ash's friends is super cute to me. The idea of that trainer's Pokémon reflect the feelings of their trainer is really cool; like writers can use Pikachu or some of Ash's other Pokémon to hint that Ash likes someone more than others. Plus, the little dude's just super adorable, isn't he?**

**Random side note 2: electric boogaloo: if you think that them touching foreheads was kinda random, I can explain. For one, I actually think it's super adorable. But what actually inspired it was that Natsu (Fairy Tail) does that a few times during some of the more emotional moments in the show. I personally feel that Natsu's character is almost exactly what a more mature Ash would be. Natsu may be more crazy than the way I'm writing Ash here, but he is still the basis for Ash's character in this story. Also thinking I might write a short little Fairy Tail (NaLu, obviously) thing once this is done.**

**Song: "Still Into You" by Paramore from their 2013 Self-Titled.**


	5. Chapter 5: Firefly

**Chapter 5: Firefly**

"Hey, everyone! Sorry to keep you waiting!"

Dawn ran back over to the group, now wearing her usual attire. She waved at them as her new friend joined the group as well.

Serena was wearing no hat with her hair down, just like during her performance. She wore a short-sleeved raglan t-shirt that had faded blue sleeves and a plain white torso, with a minimalist pink Pokeball design in the center towards the top. She also wore light pink short shorts and knee-high pink socks and white sneakers. She looked a lot more comfortable, which made sense, considering Hoenn is one of the warmer regions. She wore her precious blue ribbon tied around her wrist.

"Okay, everyone's here! Everyone follow me and let's get some food!" Kukui said excitedly, almost seeming like Ash there.

"Yes sir!" Everyone seemed to hungry or excited to point that out.

"And make sure to stay close together, of course." The teacher added.

As the group of eleven exited the Sootopolis Stadium back into the fresh air, they were quickly greeted by a predictably huge crowd; comprised of coordinators, tourists, fans, family, friends, people from all around the world. Kukui led everyone through the crowd, seemingly forcing his way through, clearing a path for them. But despite this, there were still people wandering in all directions that had to be avoided.

Ash and Serena were in the back of the group, with everyone else in the group somewhere in the middle. As soon as she left the stadium and saw the crowd, Serena took Ash's arm again. As far as she was concerned, if she'd done it once, she had his permission forever. Ash looked over at her and smiled, which seemed to confirm this idea to her. She moved closer to Ash, also smiling.

"Your outfit is cute, Serena. You look great." Ash complimented, smiling at her.

She blushed again. He had been complimenting her a lot since they reunited; not that she minded, of course. Ash taking note of her looks was something she, more or less, had to force on him when they travelled together. Him noticing without her having to ask was a great feeling. She smiled and leaned her head over to rest on Ash's shoulder. "Thanks, Ash. I'm glad you like it."

They soon arrived at the restaurant, where Kukui confirmed their reservation, plus an extra guest. Ash's classmates immediately started asking Serena about herself, and she revealed her time in Kalos as a performer, with Ash chiming in every so often to compliment her talents. Eventually, when Brock offered to tell the group an embarrassing Ash story, nobody was willing to turn it down. After everyone had a good laugh about Ash's early gym experiences in the Pewter Gym, then in the Cerulean Gym, everyone began talking amongst themselves, which gave Ash and Serena a chance to catch up.

Pikachu was sitting happily on Serena's lap. She had even filled up a small paper cup with ketchup for him. Serena looked down at Ash's partner and smiled happily, petting him, before looking back up at his trainer. "So, what kind of Pokémon have you caught in the Alola Region, Ash?"

"I don't know if you'd recognize some of them, but I'll definitely show you soon. They're all… dynamic, for sure. They've all got a lot of personality. But I like it that way." Ash grinned. "And what about you? I saw Braixen and Sylveon, and your new Mudkip and Pichu, have you caught any other Pokémon?"

"Yeah! I still have Pancham too, but I also have a wonderful Roselia that I caught here!" Serena smiled.

"That's great! How have you been, travelling by yourself?" Ash asked, clearly slightly concerned about her.

Serena laughed nervously. "It's… it's alright, you know? It's certainly less exciting, but it's given me the opportunity I needed to focus on myself a bit, to think about what I wanted to do with myself. I've thought a lot about becoming Kalos Queen, but then I thought, 'Well, what happens if I do become Queen? I live life as a celebrity in Kalos and defend my title every year?'"

Serena looked down slightly, a sad smile on her face. "After thinking about it, I don't really think I want to live like that, at least not yet. I would much rather be travelling, going around doing things, like you're always doing. So, while I don't think being a Top Coordinator is really what I want, it gives me this way to better my performing skills and travel while doing it. And I love performing, and I'm learning to love Contest Battles too. There's so much out there for me to experience, and I'd much rather experience it all sooner than later."

Ash nodded, smiling at her. "Sounds like you've really been doing a lot of thinking. It's good for you; it's important that you know what it is you want to do."

Serena smiled shyly. "Yeah. Though this certainly doesn't beat travelling with you. Even with my Pokémon, it feels like everything has calmed down so much. Travelling with you, it seemed like every day was its own adventure. It was like we'd constantly be in life-threatening danger. But, nowadays, nothing nearly as exciting or dangerous happens. And while it may be nice to be out of that kind of danger, a pretty big part of me still wishes that I could be travelling with you. But I really do love performing, and I know that it's what I want to do with myself; I just don't know what exactly it is that I want to do with performing."

Serena smiled genuinely this time. "I just wish all of this could be as easy as it is for you; you've had the same goal since you were ten years old."

Ash rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Yeah… though, to be honest, I actually have no idea what qualifies someone to be a Pokémon Master."

Serena looked at him in surprise. Ash nodded. "Yeah. It was just something I heard when I was a kid, and it sounded like a type of person to aspire to be. I imagine that it's someone who's an incredibly strong battler, fueled by the trust between trainer and Pokémon, is able to work with any and all Pokémon, and knows just about everything there is to know about Pokémon. But as far as the title itself, well, I have no clue what makes someone a Pokémon Master. I don't even know if the title is officially recognized at all. All I know is that I want to keep travelling, keep battling, keep meeting new people and making new friends, both people and Pokémon, and learn as much as I can about Pokémon along the way."

Serena stared at Ash in wonder and amazement. She continued to pet Pikachu on her lap. _'I've really missed that adventurous spirit and constant optimism.'_

"But I do think my first step towards becoming who I want to be is winning a Pokémon League. The Alola League is gonna happen pretty soon; we'll see what happens. I'm gonna do my best to win the whole thing, but it looks like there'll be some serious competition." Ash looked to Pikachu. "But we won't back down, right, Pikachu?"

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed with determination.

"The Alola Region really sounds like a great place." Serena said. "I read about it in my guidebook just now. I'd love to come and visit."

"Well, it would be awesome if you would come visit. You might even be able to see the Alola League if you come soon enough." Ash told her.

"Well, this year's Grand Festival isn't for quite a while; if I get all five ribbons here pretty soon, I would love to come and watch the League." Serena said happily.

As the two talked to each other happily, one of Ash's friends had been observing them out of the corner of his eye. Brock couldn't help but notice how happy the two seemed to be around each other, but one thing stood out to him: Pikachu had been on Serena's lap the whole time that they'd been at the restaurant. Pikachu usually stayed with Ash most of, if not all, the time. So, it was almost off-putting to see how content Pikachu was with Serena. Sure, she was constantly petting him, but there must've been more reason than that for Pikachu to stay there and look so happy. Brock recalled that a lot of Pokémon exhibited feelings and behavior that reflected the feelings of their trainers.

He was going to have a chat with Ash about this girl.

* * *

"Come on out, everyone!"

"You all, too!"

Ash's Rowlet, Torracat, Lycanroc, Poliwhirl, and Zorua emerged from their Pokeballs, while Serena's Braixen, Pancham, Sylveon, Mudkip, Roselia, and Pichu all appeared as well. Sylveon saw Ash and Pikachu and ran over to affectionately nudge Ash's leg.

Ash chuckled and knelt down to pet her. "Hey, Sylveon. You know it's only been a couple hours since I've seen you, right? I'm not going anywhere yet."

Sylveon responded happily, looking at Pikachu, seemingly asking him to come down from Ash's shoulder to play with her. Pikachu happily did so and the two began prancing around the little field just outside of the Pokémon Center, where Serena was staying.

Braixen looked a little bit sad and wistful about something when she saw all of Ash's new Pokémon, though neither of the trainers knew exactly what it was. The fox Pokémon stood close to her trainer. Pancham saw Ash and his eyes widened. Ash smiled at it and held out his hand for a fist bump. "What's up, Pancham? It's been a while, huh?"

Pancham ran over and obliged, smiling. Ash stood back up. The other Pokémon seemed to be chatting amongst themselves, meeting the others. Serena pointed to the three of Ash's Pokémon that were native to Alola. "I don't recognize some of these Pokémon, Ash. Could you tell me about them?"

"Sure." Ash nodded. He first pointed to Rowlet, who had fallen asleep on the ground almost immediately. "That one there is Rowlet. He's actually one of the starter Pokémon in Alola, but we met in the forest near our school. He's a character, for sure. He sleeps at the most inconvenient times and he's a total goof. But he's dependable when he needs to be."

He then pointed to Torracat. "That one is Torracat. He's been through a lot, but he's as determined to get stronger as I am, and he's one heck of a battler. He's a bit stubborn, and not very friendly at first, but once he trusts you, he's the best friend you could ask for."

He then pointed at Lycanroc. "And that one is Lycanroc. He actually started out as a wild Pokémon who just liked to hang around Professor Kukui's lab, but we quickly became friends and I caught him. He's super playful and nice, but he's also one of my strongest Pokémon in battle. I can always depend on him."

Ash finally pointed to his two new Pokémon. "I caught my Poliwhirl a while back; I was lost in the woods and he was a Poliwag that startled me as I was finding my way back."

Serena winked at him. "Sounds familiar."

Ash grinned back. "Sure does. But he's super friendly and nice. And then Zorua is my most recent catch; he's a mischievous one. He played all sorts of illusion pranks on me and Pikachu when we first met, but I saved him from Team Rocket and now we're friends. But, well, he hasn't stopped pranking my friends yet."

"Sounds like you've really got your hands full." Serena admitted.

"No kidding." Ash rubbed the back of his neck. "So tell me about your new Pokémon, Serena."

She nodded happily. "Sure! My first catch in Hoenn was Mudkip; it was all alone and scared in the Petalburg Forest, and eventually, after it wasn't scared of me anymore, I helped it find its way out. It turns out that some of the wild Mightyena had been after it for whatever reason. We all helped defend it and after all our help, it decided to come with us."

Ash smiled. "That's awesome, Serena."

She smiled at him, blushing slightly. "Thank you, Ash. My Roselia was caught more traditionally, I guess. I saw it out in the woods using a bunch of really pretty moves all by itself. I tried to talk to it, but I guess I startled it. We battled, and I caught it. Now, we're great friends, and she's a great help in my performances."

Serena then motioned to her Pichu. "Pichu is my most recent addition. She actually saw us practicing and started following us, because she really loved our performance and wanted to try it. She was really shy at first, and didn't really trust me, but we quickly became great friends, and she's much less shy these days. As you saw, she's a great performer too."

Serena blushed. "Honestly, part of the reason I was so happy to have her along, is, well… she reminds me of you."

Ash looked surprised. "Really?"

Serena nodded. "Mm-hm. Of course, I still always wear the blue ribbon on me, but sometimes I'll let Pichu out and have her stay on my shoulder. Whenever I did that, I felt like it somehow brought me closer to you, because I knew, wherever you were, you and Pikachu were probably doing the same thing."

Ash smiled genuinely. "Serena, I… I don't even know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything. It was probably weird anyway-"

"No, Serena. I think that's really nice of you." Ash admitted.

Pikachu hopped up onto Ash's shoulder, smiling happily at Serena. "Pika!"

Pichu bounded up to Serena's shoulder, smiling too. "Pichu!"

Serena looked surprised at first, looking at Pichu, then back at Ash. She blushed, breaking out into a sweet smile. The two trainers looked into each others' eyes, standing close to each other. They almost formed a mirror image of each other with Pikachu and Pichu on their shoulders. Ash's smile changed to his signature grin, while Serena's turned into a happy smile, and they turned their heads away to observe their Pokemon conversing and playing together. They all seemed to be playing nice, even Zorua, Torracat, and Pancham. Both trainers knew, as the sun began to set, that they couldn't stay out all that much longer. Tomorrow was a busy day, especially for Serena. But neither of them really wanted to leave each other's side. Soon, however, the sun fully set and artificial lighting was all that was left.

"Well, I'd better get moving. Everyone's waiting for me back at the inn." Ash said, turning to her.

Serena turned to face him as well. "Yeah, and we need to get some rest before tomorrow."

They smiled at each other as they returned all of their Pokémon, minus Pikachu, who climbed back up to Serena's shoulder and nuzzled her face. Serena giggled. "Goodnight, Pikachu."

Pikachu climbed down off of Serena's shoulder. Before Ash could leave, she held out her arms towards him. "May I?"

Ash smiled. "Of course."

Serena blushed as Ash walked over to her and they embraced each other in a caring hug. "Goodnight, Serena."

"Goodnight, Ash." She said into his shoulder.

"And if I don't see you before it starts tomorrow, good luck out there in round two." Ash said as they pulled away. "I know you'll be great."

Serena nodded, smiling gratefully at him. "Thanks, Ash. We'll do our very best."

Ash grinned and nodded. As Pikachu climbed back up onto his shoulder, he waved. "We'll see you tomorrow sometime."

"Mm-hm." Serena nodded happily in response. Ash then turned in the direction of the inn, walking that way. Serena couldn't help but be a little sad to see him go, but at least she knew that he'd be there and she'd be seeing him again tomorrow, at least. He had come back into her life at the perfect time; just when she had really started questioning what it was she wanted to do after the Grand Festival, and what she wanted to do with her life. It was almost like having Ash with her was like a light guiding her in the darkness, to lead her out of uncertainty and help her regain her confidence. With Ash around, everything seemed so clear.

However, she didn't realize that a certain bluenette had been watching that scene unfold from the Pokémon Center lobby.

As Serena walked back inside the Pokémon Center lobby, which was only dimly lit by the main lights on the ceiling, she was surprised to hear a girl's voice whisper to her.

"Serena!"

"Huh?" She turned immediately, caught off guard, to see Dawn standing just by the door. "Dawn?"

Dawn giggled. "C'mere. We need to chat."

Serena sighed, blushing. She already knew what this was going to be about. She walked behind Dawn and they sat down together at a table in the lobby.

"So… you like Ash, right? Tell me all about it." Dawn asked, grinning at her.

Serena blushed but didn't hesitate to nod. "Yeah. I have since I was little. We met when we were very young, when he helped me out of a forest that I got lost in when I hurt my leg. He was so kind and selfless, even as a kid. Then we met again a few years ago and travelled through Kalos together. I watched him battle, raise his Pokémon, and everything just came flooding back to me. It was like he hadn't changed at all. He raised his Pokémon with care and trust, and they grew stronger through their trust in each other. And his attitude was always so positive; no matter what happened, he would push forward through it all. That optimism is so nice to be around, and infectious too. Not to mention that he was still selfless, kind, brave, and cute… Um! Yeah… so I guess I really do have feelings for him."

Dawn giggled again. "Oh, girl. You don't just have feelings for him. You're head-over-heels for him. Not like I can blame you, though. When he was a bit younger, I certainly would've questioned you, but now… he's grown and matured. I can see why you admire him so much. Even back when we travelled together, he had most of those traits you mentioned."

Dawn looked at Serena questioningly. "So, do you have any plans to make a move?"

Serena smiled. "I… I don't know. To be honest, I really just love to be around him. He makes my world so much brighter and clearer. Like the only thing that matters is to have faith in yourself and your friends, and everything will work out the way it's supposed to. And besides…"

Serena blushed. "He, uh… probably already knows how I feel about him."

Dawn looked at her in confusion. "How so?"

Serena's blush deepened. "Well, you see… before I got on the plane here from Kalos, I kind of… kissed him."

"You did?"

Serena nodded. "Mm-hm. It was just my way of thanking him for everything he had done for me over that time we travelled together, and a way of expressing my feelings at the same time. I knew we had to go our separate ways, and I wanted to him to know how I really felt. I'm so beyond grateful for all the experiences and time we had together, and that was the only way I felt like I could really convey that properly to him."

Dawn was still surprised. "How did he react?"

"Well, actually. He seemed to be caught off-guard at first, but he gathered himself pretty quickly. I guess that must've been the start of him maturing into who he is now. Even though it's only been a year or two since we've seen each other last, he's already called me both 'cute' and 'pretty', which would've been a huge stretch for him just a couple years ago." Serena admitted, still blushing.

"That is definitely not like the Ash I remember." Dawn agreed, a playful edge to her voice. "But for real, Serena, I can tell just by watching you two talk that you have real chemistry. You two have a really special dynamic together."

Serena nodded. "Yeah. I'm really glad you think so, because, honestly, I've questioned our compatibility a few times. I really admire Ash and his character, but we're interested in very different things. I love fashion, which Ash just can't get into. Though I understand that; I know that most guys aren't into fashion, but even when we made my PokeVision video, he didn't seem all that interested, especially at first. But he did go out of his way to make an effort to learn about what I was interested in. And, well, you know… his only hobby seems to be training."

Serena smiled. "But, I've always thought that what was more important than any of that was the fact that we supported each other. I love being around Ash, and no matter what he decided to do, I would involve myself in it and try to learn about it, but I would also be there to support him. He's always supported me ever since I decided on my dream. He's been my biggest supporter, even over my own mother. So as long as we keep travelling, and keep supporting each other… I don't think we'll have compatibility issues. At least, as long as he also enjoys being around me, too."

Dawn smiled wide at her. "I can tell that you've thought about this a lot. Don't worry; I can tell that Ash absolutely loves being around you, girl."

Serena looked up at her and blushed slightly. "You… you think so?"

Dawn winked. "He seems genuinely happy when he's talking with you; I don't think so, I know so. Call it girl's intuition."

Serena's blush darkened and she smiled, embarrassed. "Thanks, girl."

* * *

Ash stood on the balcony of the hotel room that him and his friends were staying in. Pikachu was on his shoulder, as always. Kiawe, Sophocles, and Professor Kukui had all fallen asleep. Ash looked out at the city, still bustling with activity; Sootopolis was already a pretty big city, but with the Wallace Cup going on, it made sense that people were still out enjoying themselves. While one of the five beds was empty, the fifth boy to join the group sat up in his bed, seeing Ash and Pikachu out there on the balcony. He had wanted to chat with Ash about a certain girl; this was certainly his chance to do so.

"I can't believe all that's happened on this field trip already, Pikachu. It was just supposed to be a little vacation, but we've already met up with Dawn, Brock, and even Serena within two days. It's been a whirlwind, hasn't it?" Ash asked softly, looking over to his partner on his shoulder. Pikachu nodded in response.

Brock stood and walked over towards the balcony. As he approached Ash, he spoke. "Ash, do you mind if I join you two?"

Ash was caught slightly off-guard by the voice, having assumed everyone else was asleep. After seeing his older friend, and smiled and nodded. They both leaned on the railing, looking out over the city. They were only a few floors above the ground, and yet it felt like they could see the whole city, at least compared to just being on the ground.

"So, Ash, I've been meaning to ask you something."

"Hit me."

The older boy looked over to his younger friend. "Is there anything between you and that girl Serena?"

Ash stared at him blankly for a moment. "Anything? What d'ya mean?"

"Well, you know… do you like her? As in, more than a friend?" Brock made sure to clarify to avoid any potential confusion.

Ash put on a soft smile. "I'm guessing you mean in a girlfriend sort of way?"

Brock nodded.

Ash looked down, seemingly at nothing. "I honestly… don't really know. I haven't thought about it. I don't know what that kind of feeling is actually like, but I can tell you this. I really enjoy being around her; more so than a lot of my other friends. It feels like I have a real connection with her, like she and I just click, you know? I love having her around. She's always so supportive, and her passion is really inspiring, too. I love watching her compete, and I always feel so proud of her whenever her hard work pays off. Not just that, but she's been one of my biggest supporters, too. She even started her own journey just to find me! That's crazy to think about, especially now that she has her own dream that she's following."

"Ash, I've… never heard you talk about anyone like this before. It's really surprising." Brock said, caught off-guard by this side of Ash.

Ash smiled sheepishly. "Well, to be honest, I've started to see her and think about her in a different way since something happened a while back. Something I never would've imagined."

Brock tilted his head slightly. "And what was that?"

Ash rubbed under his nose, laughing nervously. "Well, y'see… right before she got on the plane here from Kalos, she, uh… she kissed me."

Brock raised his eyebrows and did a double-take. "Hold on. She kissed you?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah. Ever since then, it's like, all of a sudden, I see not just her, but all girls a little differently. I notice things about their looks that I wouldn't have given a second thought before. Hair, clothes, eyes… certain things that I like. So I eventually started telling Mallow and the others what I liked. And I've learned that pretty much all girls love to be complimented that way. But I never feel like giving girls compliments is a big deal. I just, kind of, do it, you know? And it's not a big deal. Especially if I already know them."

Ash looked up, still seemingly staring at nothing. "But, like today, when Serena came out in her new clothes, I thought she looked really cute. And that's not something I would've noticed or cared about unless she had asked me about it. But now, I notice how pretty her eyes are, how cute her clothes are, or how much I love it when she smiles. It feels like everything around her lights up when she smiles. She's just really great to be around. I don't know how else to explain it, honestly."

Brock put his hand on Ash's shoulder. "This is a side of you that I've never seen before, Ash. I'm so proud to see that you've grown and matured. Have you thought about telling _her_ any of what you just told me?"

"Huh?"

"Well, given what you've told me about Serena, I bet you anything that she feels the exact same way about you. Just like you love her smile, she probably loves yours, too. You should tell her all of that whenever you get a chance. She's probably been waiting a long time for you to say something like that to her." Brock said.

Ash stared at his old friend, contemplating his words. He had complimented Serena a few times that day, but he hadn't told her all of what he had just told Brock.

"Pika pika." Pikachu seemed to agree with Brock's sentiments. Ash looked over to Pikachu, who nodded confidently at his partner. Ash smiled confidently back, nodding as well.

Brock grinned. "I think it could be really good for you to talk with her some more. There's some real potential here, Ash… If you play this right, you could have your first girlfriend here pretty soon."

Ash blushed slightly, laughing nervously. "I don't know about that one, Brock…"

Brock shrugged playfully. "You never know. But, for real, this is all coming really naturally to you, Ash, which is a good thing. I think the best relationships are the ones that develop out of friendships, where you don't put a lot of pressure on the title of 'boyfriend' or 'girlfriend'; the ones that come naturally. And, luckily for you, that seems like where you're headed."

Ash nodded. Thinking about it, it wasn't necessary to overemphasize their relationship; he would be okay with her being his girlfriend as long as their relationship itself didn't have to change. They would just be really great friends who love being around each other. That's all a relationship had to be, right?

Ash smiled at his old friend. "Thanks, Brock. I think I'm finally figuring all of this out now."

Brock nodded, smiling. "Anytime, old friend."

They all finally left the balcony and headed to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.

* * *

**Some real talk happened in this one; I felt like I had to address a lot of the more real elements of the anime and this relationship that don't ever seem to get addressed in the show or other FanFics, such as what happens after becoming Pokémon Master or Kalos Queen, and the compatibility between Ash and Serena. I do believe they would be compatible in a real relationship, especially given the circumstances; you know, constant travelling and all that. But hopefully y'all enjoyed this one; this will likely be the last of its kind. It's mostly action from here on out.**

**The inspiration for Serena's new outfit was the female trainer from Black 2 & White 2. Rosa, I think her name was? I think she's adorable, so I decided to give Serena a somewhat similar outfit for a warmer region, but still keeping her pink color theme. I also decided to drop the visor, just because, given Serena's two canon hats, a visor seems a little out of place for her. So I just decided to leave the hat out entirely. But yeah, Serena's new shirt is basically Rosa's shirt but with short sleeves.**

**Song: "Firefly" by Skyhill, which was a single from 2015.  
****Skyhill was actually Danny's (from Game Grumps) band from before NSP, and their only album is from, like, 2007 or something, and it's really cool! They put out this single in 2015 though, probably as like a "one last hurrah" kind of thing. I highly recommend you check them out on Spotify or whatever, especially if you like Starbomb or NSP!**


	6. Chapter 6: Roundtable Rival

**Chapter 6: Roundtable Rival**

"So, to kick off the second round of this year's Wallace Cup, our first battle will be Dawn-" Vivian started, motioning to one side of the battlefield as Dawn emerged from the backstage area and took her place in the trainer's box.

"-versus Layla!" The other girl, who had light blonde hair and a serious expression, walked out into the opposing trainer's box.

"Five minutes on the clock, and… begin!"

"Quilava and Pachirisu, spotlight!"

"Servine and Vaporeon, take the stage!"

The four Pokémon appeared on the battlefield with all kinds of effects, all ready to battle.

"Alright! Quilava and Pachirisu! Those two should work well together." Ash commented.

Brock nodded. "Yeah. Especially with Quilava's calm, collected nature, and Pachirisu's frantic, unpredictable nature, the contrast alone should be enough to throw people off."

"I'm so excited to see all the battles today! You'll help us understand them, right Ash?" Mallow turned to the boy sitting next to her.

"Yeah, of course!" Ash nodded.

"I'm so curious to see all the Pokémon that the coordinators will use! It looks like they're allowed to use different Pokémon in the second round, so this'll be fun!" Lillie said excitedly.

"It should be a lot of fun!" Lana agreed. She had volunteered to take care of Piplup, excited at the prospect of being able to take care of a new water-type Pokémon. The penguin Pokémon sat in her lap.

"Alright, we'll start! Vaporeon, Water Pulse, and Servine, Energy Ball!" Layla called, a confident grin on her face. Her Pokémon complied with her commands, hurling the attacks at Quilava and Pachirisu, respectively.

"Dodge it, both of you!" Dawn commanded. Her Pokémon jumped straight up to avoid the moves, letting them crash into the field. Dawn's Pokémon did a full frontal rotation and landed back on the field with grace. Layla lost some of yellow circle that measured her points.

Mallow tapped Ash on the shoulder. "Hey, Ash, why did her points go down if all Dawn did was dodge the attacks?"

The rest of Ash's classmates looked over to him for an explanation. "Oh yeah! So the points in contest battles are measured kinda weird. So they each start with a certain amount of points, and they decrease from there. The points each coordinator loses is subjective to the judges. So it isn't like a normal battle. The main goal of contest battles is the same as the performance: to make your Pokémon shine. But in the contest battles, now your goal is to do that at the expense of your opponents. So, like just now, when Dawn's Pokémon dodged those attacks, it made Layla's team look bad because Dawn's Pokémon were able to dodge. Bonus points for those front flips they did, since it made them look really agile and graceful."

Lillie nodded in understanding. "I see! So, per se, if a coordinator used a move or a combination, and their opponent was able to turn it against them, that would be the most potent way of making someone lose points? Am I understanding that right?"

Ash nodded, smiling at his friend's obvious cleverness. "That's exactly right, Lillie."

"Let's kick this off with a combo! Quilava, Flame Wheel, and Pachirisu, Discharge!" Dawn called out.

Quilava curled up, spinning and engulfing itself in flames, creating the Flame Wheel attack. It charged forward at a high speed. Pachirisu fired its Discharge attack at the Flame Wheel, surrounding the attack with sparkling blue electricity.

"And look at that! It's our first combination battle move of the Wallace Cup! Quilava's using Flame Wheel surrounded by Pachirisu's Discharge! Pretty stuff!" Vivian announced. Layla's points went down. Quilava crashed into the ground right in between Vaporeon, causing an explosion that forced the two Pokémon back, passing off the electricity of the Discharge to them, causing extra damage. Layla's points went down again.

"So right there." Ash pointed at the scoreboard as his classmates turned to him again. "So when Dawn used that combination, Layla's points went down because it was visually appealing. So even though no damage was actually done yet, it still looked nice, so Dawn scored for that. So even if it doesn't hit, Dawn still gets points for it. But then, since it did hit, she got a lot more points."

"So, it sounds like the judges have a certain amount of points they give to a combination; pulling off the combination by itself gets you a small portion of those points, and hitting the move gets you the rest of the points. Is that right?" Lillie asked.

"Something like that. But that's a good way to think about it." Ash nodded. "And then Quilava's aim was classic double battle strategy; when you have a physical move only meant for one opponent, you can aim for the ground in between your two opponents to cause an explosion and deal damage to both at the same time."

The rest of the battle went by smoothly for Dawn; she ended up winning by a comfortable margin at the time limit. The girls let out a sigh of relief after seeing Dawn win. Ash and Brock smiled with confidence.

Fourteen coordinators were still left to battle. The next two or three battles went by quickly. Ash and Brock provided the "expert commentary", while Ash's classmates observed the battles with awe. This was their first time seeing coordinators compete in Contest Battles, which were unlike any competition they'd seen before. Even Ash's teacher and his wife were amazed at the skills of the coordinators competing here.

Brock turned to Ash after one of the battles had ended. "So, Ash, when is Serena competing?"

Ash perked up hearing her name. "Oh! Last, I think… but I can't remember for sure. You reminded me that I need to go wish her luck before she goes on stage!"

Ash stood up, after Pikachu jumped to his shoulder, and started making his way out of the aisle of seats.

"Tell her good luck from us, too!" Lillie said happily. Ash nodded, smiling at her.

Professor Kukui smiled knowingly at Ash as he passed him. "Don't be too long, Ash."

"Pikachu, take care of him, won't you?" Mallow called, winking playfully.

"Pika!" Pikachu raised an arm in affirmation.

Ash ran down to the ground floor of the stadium and took off in the direction of the backstage area. He nodded at the security guards and found his way to the waiting room. As he turned into the doorway, he quickly located Serena, with Braixen and Sylveon out by her side. Ash assumed they were to be her partners for Round Two. Compared to yesterday, there were much less coordinators in the room, leaving it much more open with a lot more breathing room. He also saw the blonde boy, Austin, from yesterday, amongst the coordinators.

Ash approached Serena from behind and placed his hands on her shoulders, causing Serena to jump in surprise.

"Eep!" She quickly turned around and saw Ash and Pikachu, and quickly relaxed, sighing in relief and placing a hand over her heart. "Oh, it's just you two. Don't scare me like that!"

Ash chuckled, removing his hands from her shoulders, moving to stand next to her on her left, both facing the screens in the center of the room. "Sorry about that, Serena. Just wanted to come and wish you three good luck before your battle!"

Serena smiled, blushing slightly. "Thanks, Ash. We're gonna battle the best we can! Right, you two?"

Braixen and Sylveon agreed, looking as determined as ever. Pikachu also seemed to wish them good luck, to which Serena's Pokémon smiled up at him in gratitude.

"And our time travelling with you and watching you battle has helped us here in Hoenn so far. So, I guess we have you to thank for how well we've been doing." Serena smiled sweetly.

Ash frowned and placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up at him in surprise. "Serena, you may have watched me battle a lot, but as for how well you're doing; that's all you. It has nothing to do with me. I'm sure you and everyone have practiced a lot for those battles, since before Hoenn, you hadn't battled all that much. You may have picked up a few things from me, but you only have yourself to thank for how well you're doing. Don't credit me for stuff I didn't do. You're crazy talented."

He grinned at her, and rubbed her shoulder lightly in encouragement. Serena was caught off-guard by Ash's praise, and was giving him a surprised look, her blush turning into a deep shade of red. She then smiled affectionately, moving closer to Ash and laying her head on his shoulder. "Thank you, Ash. You're too sweet."

Ash smiled, not minding that she was being so affectionate in public. He leaned his head over to rest on hers, moving his right arm around her neck for his hand to hang down freely. Serena smiled and placed her right hand on the arm that was around her, and her other hand on Ash's back, deep blush still present on her face. She pushed herself into his side, finding a more comfortable spot on his shoulder. Pikachu took the opportunity to hop off Ash's shoulder and chat with Braixen and Sylveon.

Serena couldn't stop blushing; she couldn't help but notice that both she and Ash had been much more affectionate towards each other since reuniting. When they had travelled together, she had been a lot more conservative with her affection. They had barely even hugged at all during their travels. But both she and Ash had matured, and she loved being cozy with him. Just being close to him was enough to make her heart race, but she felt incredibly happy while being snuggled up to him. He was warm, and his shoulder was as comfortable as any pillow she had ever used. And he didn't seem to mind her affection; he always seemed to return it in kind. She knew that he and the class would probably leave later today or tomorrow, so she wanted to spend all the time she could being close to him. She hoped he felt the same.

"My battle is last, Ash… you wouldn't mind staying here for a while, would you?" Serena asked shyly, tilting her head up to look at Ash.

He grinned. "Sure thing."

Austin, on the far opposite side of the room, fumed at the sight of Serena getting cozy with Ash. He always got what he wanted, and he refused to let someone that he considered a 'lowlife' and 'insignificant' steal his prize from him.

As the fifth battle was nearing its conclusion, Austin walked closer to the pair and their Pokémon, eyeing Ash angrily. Serena frowned and wrapped both of her arms tightly around Ash, as if she were claiming him as her own. Ash put his arms around Serena protectively, angrily looking at Austin.

The blonde boy looked over to Serena. "I hope you'll meet me in the semifinals, Serena. Let's hope you're not just all looks, and you can actually win a battle here at the Wallace Cup."

"Oh, don't worry, Austin, we'll meet you there." Serena said, smiling confidently.

"And that'll be as far as you go." Ash grinned confidently as well. Serena smiled up at him cutely, happy that he immediately spoke up in her defense. Pikachu, Braixen, and Sylveon all shared the same confident smiles as their trainers.

"Tsk!" Austin frowned angrily, storming away towards the entrance to the stage.

Ash saw Serena smiling at him and grinned down at her in response. "Good riddance."

"Mm-hm." Serena agreed, giggling. She moved back to Ash's side, laying her head back down on his shoulder and nuzzling into it. "You're a nice pillow."

"Oh, so all I am is a pillow to you?"

Serena smiled teasingly up at him. She poked his chest playfully with her right hand and started making little circles with her finger. "Maybe~"

Ash smiled playfully. "You're lucky I think you're cute."

Serena blushed darker, but decided to fire back. She stopped drawing circles and placed her hand flat on his chest. "Hey, you're the cutest pillow I've ever had."

"Gee, thanks." Ash rolled his eyes, smiling. "Although, I don't know how much of a good idea it is to be trying to sleep right before your battle."

"Hey! I'm not trying to sleep! I'm just trying to find the sweet spot on your shoulder for future reference." She tilted her head up to look at him and winked playfully.

Ash couldn't help but smile at that, as he let his head rest on top of hers. They fell into a comfortable silence, returning their collective attention to the Contest Battle going on. Ash lifted his hand that was hanging around Serena and began to play with her hair, twirling a lock of it around his pointer finger. Serena began using her finger to draw on Ash's chest again. He felt her slowly write 'X', 'Y', and 'Z', before sighing contentedly and placing her hand flat on his chest again, nuzzling into his shoulder.

"Okay, I found it." Serena closed her eyes and smiled.

"Well, what about the other one? It could be different, you know."

"Ooh! Good idea." Serena giggled as she playfully pranced out of Ash's grip and made her way to his opposite side, laying her head down on his left shoulder. She let out a sigh of content as she re-snuggled into Ash. He smiled at her playfulness and began to rub her back lightly. Their Pokémon smiled at each other, enjoying their trainers' playful, cute interaction.

"Mmm… nope, same spot." Serena concluded.

"Got a preference?"

"Hmm… right, I think. It feels more natural for me."

"Well, you can use either whenever you feel like." Ash smiled down at her.

Serena lifted her head and smiled back up at him, blushing. "Thanks, pillow."

Before Serena could get cozy again, both of their attentions were caught by the screens in front of them. Austin was about halfway through his battle. The score was heavily in his favor. His Breloom and Crawdaunt were aggressive; he was almost treating it more like a battle than a Contest Battle. Most coordinators relied heavily on special moves; Austin seemed to be simply battering his opponents with moves like Mach Punch and Crabahammer.

"This Austin guy doesn't really seem to get Contest Battles all that well, does he?" Ash noted, crossing his arms.

Serena frowned at the screen. "Maybe not, but he has won three ribbons; same as me. It may be an unconventional way to battle in contests, but it works, because he still wins if he's able to knock out his opponents."

"And it's not like he isn't a performer, either. He did make it through the first round, after all. He's talented, that's for sure. He just takes a different approach to Contest Battles than most of us do." Serena finished.

"Well, then, that makes it easy for you!" Ash said.

"Hm?" Serena turned to look over at him. "How so?"

"All you have to do is dodge his physical attacks, and work your performer magic! If you have good-looking combos, and the agility to dodge, he shouldn't really even get any points at all. Just out-perform him!" Ash encouraged, shooting a glance down at Serena's partners too.

Serena giggled at his enthusiasm. "You make it sound easy. We need to be at our best and on our toes for anyone who made it through the first round of the Wallace Cup. But you do have a good point."

"Have you battled him before?" Ash inquired curiously.

Serena nodded. "Only once. I lost, because he caught me off-guard with that aggressive style. I didn't really know what to do against it at the time. But that was only our second contest here; we've learned a whole lot since then. We're ready for anything. Right, you two?"

Braixen and Sylveon let out cries of agreement, their faces showing confidence and determination.

"Time's up!"

Ash and Serena looked back at the screen to see the final scores; Austin had won by a fairly wide margin. "And the winner, moving on to the quarterfinals, is Austin!"

Austin ran his hand through his hair, a smug smile on his face. "Naturally."

"Ew." Serena pretended like she was going to vomit. "That smugness is so repulsive."

"You can say that again." Ash agreed, frowning.

As Austin found his way back to the coordinator waiting room, he immediately spotted the honey blonde girl and made his way towards her. As Serena saw him coming her way, she immediately turned her head away from him angrily. But Austin would not be discouraged.

"Lovely Serena." He said as he approached. "Surely, you must now see that you require the company of a supremely talented coordinator, a real gentleman, for you to succeed. Don't you?"

Serena continued to look away. "Go away, Austin. I don't need or want to be around you."

Ash had to hold himself back to keep from intervening. He wanted nothing more than to stand up for Serena, but he knew she wanted to do this on her own.

Austin frowned angrily at Ash, knowing he was the reason why Serena had newfound courage. "I refuse to let a beautiful girl like you hang around this, this… low-life."

He looked over at Ash in disgust, walking up to her and attempting to grab her hand. "Now, you're coming with m-"

"That's enough."

Ash walked in front of Serena, pushing Austin's hand away from her. "You can put me down all you want, but I won't just stand here and let you harass her like this. Serena told me what you did when she refused to go out with you. You're the low-life out of the two of us, dude. I don't go around harassing women in public, trying to win them over with money, or whatever it is you have. Unlike you, I have respect and admiration for Serena. So back away from her. Now."

Austin fumed at Ash's words, doing as he was told. No matter how he tried to compose himself, he failed. "I will prove to you, to her, to everyone, that I am easily the best coordinator in all of Hoenn. I will get what I want, no matter what it takes."

Ash continued to keep his arm extended out in front of Serena as he watched Austin storm out of the waiting room and into the hallway. Ash sighed in relief as he left. He looked over to Serena. "You okay?"

Serena nodded sadly. "Mm-hm. Thanks, Ash. Thanks for standing up for me. I know I said I would defend myself, but I don't think he would actually leave me alone without you here."

Ash smiled empathetically. "I'm sure you could've done it on your own. I just couldn't stand back and let him harass you like that. It's despicable, if you ask me."

Serena smiled sheepishly. "He's certainly not pleasant to be around."

"For sure." Ash agreed, looking back up at the screen. Two minutes had gone by in the seventh battle. "Alright, I'd better get back up to the stands. Don't wanna miss your battle!"

Serena smiled, nodding. "Right!"

Ash brought her into another quick hug for good luck. He kept one arm around her and offered her a fist bump. "Good luck out there! Everyone else wishes you good luck, too. We know you'll all be great!"

Serena giggled, fist bumping Ash. "Thanks!"

"Pika!" Pikachu held out both of his arms, to which Sylveon lifted a paw and Braixen used one of her own paws for fist bumps of their own.

Pikachu then jumped up on to Serena's shoulder, and nuzzled her face, making Serena giggle again. "Thanks to you too, Pikachu."

Pikachu jumped back to Ash's shoulder as he started towards the exit of the room. He stopped just before the door, turning around and giving her his signature grin. "I have one more thing to say, but I think you already know what it is."

Serena nodded, a determined and confident look on her face. It ran through their heads simultaneously as they grinned at each other.

_"Don't give up 'til it's over."_

* * *

Both Serena and Dawn had comfortably found their way to the semifinals. It was now nearing the end of the first of the two semifinal bouts; Dawn versus Jessalina. One minute left.

"Alright, Pachirisu, Electro Ball! And Quilava, use Flamethrower!"

Dawn's Pokémon aimed their attacks at Jessalina's Mimikyu and Meowth respectively, both landing direct hits. After the smoke caused by the attacks had cleared, Meowth and Mimikyu had both fainted. The judges all threw up their 'X' to the big screen, signalling a knockout.

"And that's it! Both Mimikyu and Meowth are unable to continue! Which means the first coordinator moving on to the finals is none other than Dawn!" Vivian announced.

"Alright! Well done, you two!" Dawn exclaimed, petting both of her partners in excitement.

With that, Dawn retreated towards the back room, while Jessalina stormed off in a fit of rage. On the way back to the backstage area, Dawn passed by Serena, giving the honey-blonde a grin of confidence. "Good luck out there, girl!"

Serena nodded, grinning confidently as well. "Let's meet in the finals!"

"Sounds good to me!" Dawn held her hand up for a high five. Serena flashed a smile at this and high-fived the bluenette as they passed each other in the hallway.

Serena made her way out onto the battlefield as Vivian called her name. She knew who she would be battling: Austin. The blonde-haired boy soon showed up on the opposite side of the battlefield, giving Serena a cocky smile.

"So, you actually made it here."

"Of course I did! It's about time I finally get my win back." Serena smiled at her Pokéballs as she brought them out.

Austin ran his hand through his hair. "We'll just see. I think if I win, you owe me a date."

"So moving on to the finals of Wallace Cup really isn't enough for you, huh?" Serena said, a hint of disgust in her voice. "Well, you can forget it. Because no matter what happens, I'm not going on a date with you. But you won't even have to worry about that."

"Because we're not going to lose!" Serena proclaimed confidently.

"Tsk!" Austin scoffed. "Breloom and Crawdaunt, get out here!"

"Braixen and Sylveon, take the stage!"

The four Pokémon all appeared amongst all of the effects of the seals. Breloom and Crawdaunt looked cocky, overconfident. Braixen and Sylveon looked determined, as they both shared a look of understanding with their trainer. They knew that not just a spot in the finals was on the line; but also Serena's pride as a coordinator, and even as a female coordinator.

Ash, from his spot in the stands, looked at Austin and his Pokémon, then at Serena and hers. He smiled.

The outcome was obvious.

Ash leaned back in his chair, almost as if he wasn't even worried about what was happening before him. Pikachu curled up for a nap in Ash's lap, mimicking his trainer's attitude. Brock noticed this, and turned to his friend in the adjacent seat. "Ash? Aren't you gonna cheer on Serena?"

Ash put his hands behind his head, slightly messing up his hat's placement in the process. "Nah. I already know how this is gonna go down. She doesn't need me. She's really strong."

Brock raised an eyebrow, but seemed to trust his friend's judgement. The older boy looked again down at Serena and her opponent, seemingly understanding what Ash meant. One side was cocky with an eye on only winning, while the other side looked determined, and showed a shared trust between the trainer and the Pokémon that the other side clearly lacked. Brock smiled.

"But how can you be so sure, Ash?" Mallow asked, turning to him from the opposite adjacent seat.

"Just a feeling I got." Ash grinned. Mallow gave Ash a look of confusion, before smiling in spite of herself. She turned back to the battle about to begin, eager to watch more Contest Battles. Her classmates, minus Ash, seemed to share her enthusiasm.

"Five minutes on the clock, and begin!"

"Let's not wait, you two! Braixen, Psybeam, and Sylveon, Swift!" Serena called, prancing around her trainer's box as she did so, adding an element of charisma and performance to the battle right from the get-go.

Her Pokémon fired off their attacks at Breloom and Crawdaunt, respectively. Austin smirked smugly. "Switch! Crawdaunt, take it, and Breloom, Mach Punch!"

In the blink of an eye, Austin's two Pokémon had switched their places. Crawdaunt took the Psybeam like it was nothing, while Breloom used it's lightning-quick Mach Punch to knock away all of the speed stars heading its way. As the smoke cleared, both Pokémon as well as their trainer's faces all exhibited an increased overconfidence. Serena lost a small amount of points.

Serena grinned, leaping up and spinning around once, and landing gracefully back on her feet. "Braixen, Sylveon, dance!"

Serena's two Pokémon grinned and began to do exactly that. Their agility and grace was able to shine through; they pranced around the battlefield, jumping around in high arcs, with Braixen twirling her wand and Sylveon waving around her ribbons. They occasionally swapped sides of the battlefield, jumping past each other to land on the opposite side of the field. They both danced towards their opponents.

"We've no time for dancing! Crawdaunt, Crabhammer, and Breloom, Iron Tail!" Austin called angrily.

His Pokémon quickly complied, leaping towards Braixen and Sylveon aggressively. However, they both passed right by their targets; Serena's partners had danced their way into graceful dodges. They had swapped sides of the battlefield during their dancing; and now, their opponents had all their momentum going in the opposite direction, toward Serena.

"Now, Braixen, Flamethrower! And Sylveon, Moonblast!" Serena called, grinning.

Her Pokémon complied, sharing the same grin as their trainer. Braixen used her wand to fire Flamethrower at Breloom, while Sylveon aimed the moon's power at Crawdaunt. Because their opponents couldn't stop their forward momentum in time, both attacks were direct hits, causing major damage to both of them. Austin lost points not only for the two direct hits, but also for missing his attacks and for Braixen and Sylveon's dancing.

"I've definitely never seen that before. She didn't even use that strategy in her last two battles." Brock noted. "She's always had this graceful dance element to her coordinating style, but I've never seen it to this extent."

Ash nodded. "Yeah. And that's not even close to how good they really are. You wouldn't believe how many times I've seen those two dance just like that when they practiced back in Kalos. Given all the time since then, I'm sure they're way better now than they were then. Those two are graceful beyond words, dude."

"Not to mention Serena! She's almost as much of a part of the performance as her Pokémon!" Lillie noted excitedly.

"Well, that's how Pokémon Performances are." Ash said, smiling down at his honey-blonde friend. "They're a lot more freestyle than Pokémon Contests, which have set rules. Serena won't actually get any points for performing herself, but it gets the crowd really into her performances and battles. She's totally in sync with her Pokémon."

"It's easy to tell that much." Kiawe said, watching intently.

"It's incredibly fascinating." Professor Kukui started. "Dawn and Serena are so different. Dawn seems like a much more traditional, well-rounded coordinator. Her moves are precise and she excels at both performances and contest battles. But Serena's different. She's equally talented, but in a different way. She brings this completely unique style to her performances and battles; one that involves grace, much more smooth motion. She's not necessarily a skilled battler, but she excels so much at performing that she's able to adapt and use her performing skills to catch her opponents off-guard and win the match using grace and agility. Not to mention that her and her Pokémon are totally in sync with each other; which isn't something you see very often in Pokémon Contests."

Ash smiled. "And that just makes her all the more special."

"Don't let up, you two! Braixen, Fire Blast, and Sylveon, Dazzling Gleam!" Serena called.

Braixen and Sylveon fired their attacks again, this time closer together. The light of the Dazzling Gleam gave the Fire Blast a beautiful backlighting and glimmer, causing Austin to lose points due to the combination.

"Dodge, now!" Austin called angrily.

Crawdaunt and Breloom attempted to move away from the oncoming combination attack, but they only got so far before the explosion caused by the attack forced them both in opposite directions, towards the long ends of the battlefield. Austin lost points again for still being affected by the attack.

Austin growled, rage building up intensely on his face. "Crawdaunt, Bubblebeam, and Breloom, Energy Ball!"

Austin's two Pokémon retreated back to their side of the field before firing off their respective special attacks.

Serena spun around once gracefully. "Now, dance!"

Braixen and Sylveon danced again, easily dodging their opponent's attacks. However, Austin's Pokémon had used the smoke caused by the attacks as a cover. They crossed each other in an X-pattern, racing toward Serena's side of the battlefield under the smokescreen. The soon emerged from the smoke, already practically on top of Serena's Pokémon.

"That was just a distraction! Crabhammer and Iron Tail!"

The two Pokémon slammed their brute-force physical attacks into Braixen and Sylveon, each a direct, super-effective hit. The collisions sent Serena's partners were sent flying back towards the wall of the stadium. Serena had to act fast. "Quick, snap out of it!"

Braixen and Sylveon opened their eyes and recovered their wits just in time to land on the stadium wall, and leap back to the battlefield, each landing gracefully back in front of their trainer. However, they were noticeably injured now, each panting heavily.

Austin ran his hand through his hair. "You may as well give up now, sweetheart."

"We won't give up until it's over!" Serena called out, determined.

Austin growled. "If you insist on being persistent… Breloom, Energy Ball!"

Breloom fired the attack straight at the ground in the very center of the battlefield, creating another massive smokescreen.

'So, they're trying to cover up another physical attack.' Serena thought. She quickly noticed that the smokescreen stretched unusually high.

Serena grinned. "Sylveon, launch Braixen into the air with your ribbons!"

Braixen jumped onto Sylveon's awaiting ribbons before being launched high into the air by the Eeveelution. "Quick, Sylveon, Fairy Wind!"

Sylveon quickly executed the move, clearing out the smokescreen almost instantly. Austin panicked.

Serena's thoughts had been exactly right. There Breloom was, high in the air, just in front of Braixen. Crawdaunt was rushing towards Sylveon on the ground. They had been trying to launch a ground and air combination attack, with one acting as a distraction and the other aiming for the hit.

"Quick, Breloom, Mach Punch!" Austin called, in a panic.

"We won't let you! Braixen, Fire Blast!" Serena called. "And Sylveon, use Moonblast!"

Before their opponents could ready their moves, Braixen and Sylveon landed direct hits, both super-effective on their opponents. Crawdaunt was sent flying back towards Austin while Breloom was sent crashing to the ground. After the smoke cleared, Austin's Pokémon lie on the ground, both fainted.

The judges put up their 'X' signs. The battle was over.

"And that's it! Just like Dawn before her, Serena wins her battle with a brilliant double-knockout! That means Serena will face Dawn in the finals of the Wallace Cup!" Vivian announced.

"Well done, you two!" Serena rushed onto the field and embraced her partners. They happily embraced their trainer back, despite still being injured.

"Tsk!" Austin growled, returning his Pokémon to their Pokéballs. He stared at Serena; probably for too long. Serena caught him staring and looked at him angrily.

"Oh, Austin. Don't you dare call me another pet name again. As a matter of fact, don't treat me as some kind of prize or object. And you know what? Don't talk to me at all. Or I'll-" She stopped herself, and began to grin confidently. "Or we'll make sure you never get close to me again."

Austin fumed, his face becoming bright red with anger. Serena and her Pokemon shot Austin confident smiles as they turned around strode out of the battlefield together.

"That was incredible! How did she know exactly what her opponents were planning?" Mallow asked in shock.

"She reminds me of you, Ash." Brock said knowingly, smiling at his old friend.

Ash simply smiled.

* * *

"The Wallace Cup's final round is upon us! On my left, it's Dawn! And on my right, Serena! These two coordinators have made it through three battles each to get to this point, and now, the Wallace Cup Ribbon is on the line!" Vivian announced.

Ash and his friends watched from their seats with anticipation. His classmates were sad that it was coming to an end, but everyone was on the edge of their seats, wondering which of their friends would take home the win.

"Hey, Serena! Good luck, and may the best coordinator win!" Dawn called to Serena across the battlefield.

Serena nodded, smiling confidently. "Let's have a great battle, Dawn!"

Dawn nodded, grinning as well. "Quilava and Pachirisu, spotlight!"

"Braixen and Sylveon, take the stage!"

The four Pokémon appeared on the field with type-matching effects adding to their entrances.

"Five minutes on the clock, and-"

They were interrupted when the big screen sparked, then shut off. Almost immediately after, there was a huge explosion on the directly beside the battlefield, just underneath the big screen.

Someone had invaded the Wallace Cup.

* * *

**So the real shit starts next chapter. It's been all fun and games so far, but all hell breaks loose starting in the next chapter. Be prepared! It may not be exactly what you think, either. Although, if you've been paying close attention, you might have an idea.**

**Sorry that this one went long! I wanted to include the entirety of a Contest Battle (even though this particular one was shorter than I would've liked) before the conflict really beings. Hope you all liked it!**

**Song: "Roundtable Rival" by Lindsey Stirling from her 2014 Album "Shatter Me"**  
**If you have somehow never listened to Lindsey Stirling, PLEASE do yourself a favor and listen to all of this album. You will not regret it.**


	7. Chapter 7: How Wonderful

**Chapter 7: How Wonderful**

"Alright, who did that?" Ash yelled angrily, jumping up from his seat. He knew this could only be bad news, and he was prepared to take action immediately in defense of his two friends on the battlefield.

Brock was the first one to stand up alongside Ash, followed soon by his classmates. This caused people around them in the stands to look at them in shock and confusion, despite their evident bravery.

From the cloud of smoke hiding the hole made in the wall of the stadium, two nets were launched towards either side of the battlefield, directly at the two sets of Pokemon occupying them. Before anyone could react, all four Pokemon were captured in those nets, and brought back towards the cloud of smoke.

"Braixen, Sylveon!"

"Quilava, Pachirisu!" Dawn called as they moved away from her, into the smoke cloud. "Alright, who's responsible for this?"

The cloud of smoke slowly began to clear up, and a familiar shadow could be seen.

The sound of a man, a woman, and another creature laughing could be heard echoing throughout the stadium.

"Look, is that a Wallace Cup final I see?"

"If the twerp goes to Hoenn, then so do we."

"On the wind!"

"Past the stars!"

"Aw yeah, we throwin' it all the way back to Sinnoh for you twerps!"

"Bringing Team Rocket-branded chaos at a breakneck pace!"

"Dashing young love and putting unfortunate circumstances in its place!"

"Stealing from two expired twerpettes makes it doubly sweet."

"We've made everything worse, so our work is complete!"

"Jessie!"

"And James."

"Meowth, now dat's a name!"

"Putting the more talented performers in their places!"

"We're Team Rocket!"

"And we're in your faces!"

"Team Rocket!" Ash and all his friends yelled simultaneously, including the girls on the battlefield. Their balloon had fully come into view now, and everyone could see the magenta and blue hair, as well as the Meowth occupying the balloon.

"How wonderful! It appears we've captured some talented performers in our little nets!" Jessie exclaimed happily.

"Don't you guys know when to give up?" Dawn asked, exasperated.

"Let our Pokemon go, Team Rocket!" Serena yelled.

"Ah ah ah, I'm afraid that is simply not going to happen. You must've learned that asking us won't get you anywhere, yes? Surely you have at least that much brain power." James said, turning to Serena. He moved the microphone away from them, so just the two girls could hear them. "And yes, before you ask, I did say _young love_."

"Yeah." Meowth agreed. "We saw ya in dere earlier, you and the twerp."

Serena immediately blushed a dark red in embarrassment.

Jessie pointed at Serena angrily. "Yeah, blondie! You were in there snuggling with the twerp! What's that all about?"

"That's none of your business!" Serena yelled angrily, shaking off the embarrassment.

"Well, whatever." James shrugged, moving the microphone back to its original position. "Anyway, we're off now. Toodaloo!"

"We'd love to steal all of your Pokemon too, but we simply don't have time. Buh-bye now!" Jessie said.

Before anyone could react, Team Rocket's balloon exited the way it entered, through the hole they created in the wall of the stadium, bringing Dawn and Serena's Pokemon with them.

Ash reacted first. "Quick, let's go outside and figure out which way they're headed!"

Ash's friends all nodded. "Right!"

As the big group began to run out of the stands, down the stairs and towards the exit of the stadium, Ash ran down to the bottom of the stands, hoping to reach his two friends. "Dawn, Serena!"

The two girls turned towards Ash's voice and saw him at the bottom of the stands. "Meet us outside, we're gonna track them down!"

"Right, Ash!" Dawn nodded. She turned towards the honey-blonde. "Let's go, Serena!"

"Right!"

Before they could leave, Vivian approached them, her microphone moved away from her mouth so her voice was no longer on the speaker system. "The police have been called, they're going to make sure Team Rocket doesn't get too far without giving you your Pokemon back."

"Thanks, Vivian. If they can tell us where they're going, you can leave the rest to us." Dawn said confidently.

"That's right. We've dealt with Team Rocket a whole lot before this." Serena agreed.

Vivian smiled. "You're both very driven and talented. I have no doubt we'll be able to to have our finals sooner rather than later."

The two coordinators smiled and nodded as Vivian began to relay the situation to the audience, saying that the finals were indefinitely postponed, until the situation was resolved.

Ash, with Pikachu hanging on for dear life, ran all the way down to the exit and found his friends already looking around just outside the doors. He called to them. "Have you guys seen anything?"

Professor Kukui shook his head. "We haven't seen where they went off to, but Officer Jenny is headed this way. I'm sure she knows."

Mallow looked down at Shaymin in her arms, a worried look on her face. "I hope everyone's okay."

Kiawe made a fist, gritting his teeth. "The nerve of Team Rocket…"

"Don't worry, you guys. I'm sure we'll find them in no time, especially with the police on the case. I don't really think you can just get away with interrupting the Wallace Cup in such a direct manner, no matter who you are." Lillie said reassuringly.

"Ash!"

The boy in questioned turned his head to the voice that called from behind him, finding Serena and Dawn running up to join their group. They stopped on either side of Ash, with Serena placing a gentle, worried hand on Ash's back. "Do you know where they went?"

"Not yet. But Officer Jenny'll tell us." He said, grinning at her and motioning to the policewoman stopping her motorcycle in front of them. Her partner Growlithe occupied the passenger's car.

"Dawn, Serena. We've received reports that Team Rocket is hiding out in the outskirts of the city, near the Cave of Origin. Are you all sure you can handle this on your own?" The Officer asked them.

Dawn nodded. "Yes, ma'am."

"And we'll all be going, too." Ash quickly added. This caused Serena to smile up at Ash, closing her hand and grabbing some of Ash's jacket, as if steeling herself as well.

The policewoman nodded. "Ash Ketchum, correct? I remember you from all those years ago in the Hoenn League. It's reassuring to know that you and your friends will go too. To get to where they're supposedly hiding, just run in that direction, to the far northwest end of the city. Follow the path there for a little bit until you see an opening in the rock formation that holds the city. That's supposedly where Team Rocket is hiding out."

"Thank you, Officer Jenny. Let's move, everyone!" Professor Kukui called.

"Right!"

* * *

"Well, we didn't get Pikachu, but this is still quite the haul!"

"Four twerpette Pokemon, all well-trained performers!"

"And we'll send 'em all to da boss, and they'll put on a bee-yu-tee-ful performance every day after he wakes up! I can see it now!"

"_Wow. It seems like just another day here at Team Rocket HQ. I wish I had a little somethin' to spice up my mornin' before I go take over da woyrld."_

"Then, our four performers come into his room, and they put on a beautiful performance for him, inspirin' him to wake up and seize the day!"

"_Look at this beautiful performance! I just gotta give Meowth and his friends a huge promotion for sendin' me dese Pokemon to make every mornin' unforgettable!"_

"Say it wit' me now…"

"PROMOTION! JACUZZIS! THE BOSS' LOVE! ALL THE FOOD WE CAN EAT!"

James quickly finished up his second can of ale. "We really pulled it out of the bag this time! Go us!"

Jessie threw her second finished can behind her. "You're so right! I mean, think of all the times we thought we were successful an did this exact thing only to have something go wrong!"

Meowth downed the rest of his drink. "Ah, dat hits da spot… huh?"

The three were startled by cries of anger coming from the two cages off to the side, as well as the cages being slammed into. They looked back to see Dawn's Quilava angrily slamming itself into the cage bars, trying to escape.

"Now, now, don't tire yourself out. You can't break or burn that cage, buddy." Jessie said, waving her hand dismissively.

"It's resistant to every type of attack there is!" James added happily.

Quilava fumed, with Pachirisu next to it looking worried. It hated being confined, but it didn't want its friend to continue hurting itself. Braixen and Sylveon were in the other cage, looking worried as well. They were desperately hoping for their trainer or her crush to come and get them out.

"This is it, grunts. The boss is already inside, waiting for us. This is the moment the Hoenn Division has been waiting for. Are you all ready?"

"Yes, Commander Chi!"

"Good. Then let us go. Follow me."

Team Rocket looked towards the voices, which came from near the entrance of the Cave of Origin. They peered above a bush, and saw a group of people, maybe 30 or 40, all dressed exactly the same. The men all wore pitch black long-sleeve shirts, pants, and shoes. The girls wore pitch black, long-sleeve dresses and thigh-high socks, with black shoes. The shirts and dresses all had the left sleeve colored bright red, and the right one colored royal blue. They also had some kind of patch on their chests, though they couldn't determine what exactly the patched had on it. The group was led by a man with long, slicked back, purple hair. The man was tall and built, almost like an old-school wrestler. He wore the same uniform with a slightly different patch, one that showed a hint of purple. He also wore a purple bandana around his neck. He turned around and led the group of 'grunts' into the opening, disappearing into the darkness of the cave.

"What was that about?" James asked.

"Not sure, but it looks like we may not be the only ones doing evil deeds around here." Jessie asked.

"What makes you think they're evil? They may not be." Meowth said.

"They look just like any other team we've seen. Team Galactic, Team Plasma, Team Flare… they're all just like that." Jessie said suspiciously.

"I couldn't make out what that patch had on it… I wonder what it said." James pondered.

"Yeah, maybe next time this happens, we shouldn't get intoxicated." Meowth concluded.

* * *

"There's the path!"

Ash led the group with Dawn and Serena on either side of him, and stopped at the edge of path into the woods on the outskirts of Sootopolis City. Most of Ash's classmates, as well as Brock followed close behind, stopping as well.

Ash looked at the group in confusion. "Did Sophocles fall behind?"

"Go on without us, Ash!"

Ash looked beyond his friends to see Professor Kukui and Professor Burnet helping Sophocles stay on his feet. "This was too much running for me."

"We know you guys can handle it. It's only Team Rocket, right?" Professor Burnet asked.

"Let's hope so." Ash said, looking back down the path. He then looked to Dawn on his left, then Serena on his right. The two girls smiled in response. He motioned to the path. "Well, we're not getting anything done standing here! Let's move, guys!"

Ash, Serena, Dawn, Brock, Lillie, Lana, Mallow, and Kiawe all took off running down the path that led to the Cave of Origin. It didn't take them long, maybe 2 or 3 minutes to find the entrance to the legendary cave.

Pikachu's ears suddenly perked up, and it began sniffing the air. Ash looked over to his partner. "What's up, buddy?"

"Do you smell them, Pikachu?" Serena asked him.

"Pika!" He smiled at his friend and hopped off Ash's shoulder, running off the path and into the woods.

"Quick, let's follow Pikachu!" Mallow said.

"Don't lose him!" Lillie agreed, and the group took off after Ash's partner.

It took less than a minute before Pikachu had found Team Rocket, calling out and motioning over to them. The group saw Team Rocket sitting on tree stumps, drinking something out of cans.

"Team Rocket!"

The three stopped their drinking and turned to see the group of trainers approaching them, all looking upset and ready to take back what had been stolen. "Give Dawn and Serena's Pokemon back!"

"In your dreams, twerp!" Jessie started.

Dawn squinted, sweat-dropping. "Are you guys… drinking?"

Kiawe facepalmed. "Looks like it."

"Hey, it's celebratory! It's what you do after a hard day's work! What would you know, anyway? You're not even old enough to drink!" James said pointedly.

"How do you know that?" Kiawe asked suspiciously.

James recoiled. "Um… are you saying that you _are_ old enough to drink?"

Kiawe shrugged. "Maybe I am. Or maybe I'm not."

Jessie pointed to Dawn. "But you! You're definitely not old enough! And neither are you, twerp!"

"Please tell us you're not old enough to drink." James added quietly.

"Um… no, not yet. But I'm pretty sure I'm close." Ash confirmed. "But wait, what does that have to do with anything?"

"And besides, how do we know Meowth is old enough to drink?" Lillie asked.

"There are no laws sayin' Pokemon can't drink." Meowth said, shrugging.

"Well, I guess this will be easier than we thought." Dawn said, grinning teasingly.

"Now that's just rude!" Jessie shouted.

"We're not drunk, only slightly intoxicated! Go, Mareanie!" James called. The Pokemon emerged from its Pokeball, before going back to James and closing itself around his head. James tried to defend himself but failed, and when Mareanie let go of him, his face was totally purple.

"That looks uncomfortable…" Serena noted.

"Mimikyu, get out here!" Jessie called. It emerged and its eyes started to glow when it saw Pikachu standing in front of Ash, ready to battle.

"We won't let you get away with this! Pancham, let's go!" Serena yelled.

"Piplup, ready to go?" Dawn's partner nodded, and leapt out of her arms and next to Pikachu and Pancham.

"Serena, you're going to have to help me with Mimikyu. It really does not like Pikachu, and it battles on another level when it's against Pikachu. But if we work together, it should be just fine." Ash whispered to the girl next to him.

"Got it, Ash." Serena nodded, smiling.

"Should we help them?" Lana asked.

Brock shook his head. "I think they'll be okay."

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

"Mimikyu, use Wood Hammer!"

Pikachu dashed towards Mimikyu, both him and Ash knowing that it wouldn't actually have any effect if it hit. Mimikyu tried to slam it's glowing purple tail into Pikachu, but Ash's partner was much too fast. As Pikachu was approaching, Mimikyu spun around, trying to hit it, but Pikachu retreated back towards Ash.

"Use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu leapt into the air and fired Thunderbolt at Mimikyu, still on the ground in front of Jessie.

"Dodge it!"

Mimikyu jumped into the air, deftly avoiding Pikachu's attack.

"Now, Serena!" Ash yelled.

"Pancham, use Dark Pulse!" Serena called.

The Panda Pokemon fired its Dark Pulse at Mimikyu, still in the air. It had no real maneuverability in the air, and thus, no way to dodge. The Dark Pulse nailed its target, sending Mimikyu crashing to the ground in a heap, its disguise's effect keeping it from taking too much damage.

"Use Thunderbolt again!" Ash called.

Pikachu quickly fired Thunderbolt before Mimikyu could make another move, its disguise not protecting it this time. It landed another direct hit, rendering Mimikyu down for a while.

"But I didn't even get to use my Z-move!" Jessie complained. "Get up, Mimikyu!"

Serena took a mental note of what Jessie said. She didn't know what a Z-Move even was.

"Piplup, use Drill Peck!"

"Mareanie, Spike Cannon!"

Mareanie fired its attack at Piplup and the Penguin Pokemon began to rotate rapidly, flying towards Mareanie. It somehow managed to dodge, or at least, power through, all of the spikes and land a direct hit on James' Pokemon. It crashed to the ground in a heap.

"Ah! Mareanie!"

"Now, Hydro Pump!" Dawn called.

Piplup opened its beak wide and shot a powerful geyser of water towards Mareanie and landing yet another direct hit, leaving James' Pokemon down for a while, too.

"Alright, Pikachu, Iron Tail!" Ash called, grinning.

"Pika!" Pikachu dashed towards Team Rocket, but jumped and flew past them. He steeled his tail, and smashed the cage holding Quilava and Pachirisu into a bunch of small metal bars. He then did the same to the cage holding Braixen and Sylveon. Sylveon leaned down and nuzzled Pikachu in thanks. Pikachu blushed from the affection.

"Great job, Pikachu!" Ash smiled. Ash's classmates were also smiling from behind him.

"You twerps just need to learn when to quit!" Meowth yelled frantically.

"Quilava, Pachirisu! Thank goodness you're safe!" Dawn said as her Pokemon ran towards her and she hugged both of them in relief.

"Braixen, Sylveon! I'm so glad you're both okay!" Serena said as she embraced both of her Pokemon as well. She let them go and picked up Pikachu, petting his head and nuzzling him. "Thank you for saving everyone, Pikachu."

Pikachu blushed again in embarassment, nuzzling Serena back. Ash watched both of his friends with a big smile on his face. Quickly, though, serious looks crossed everyone's faces again.

Jessie growled. "That's so cute, I can't take it anymore! Mimikyu, get up, and use Shadow Ball!"

"And Mareanie, use Sludge Bomb!" James called as well.

Since neither Dawn or Serena were quite prepared, Shadow Ball nailed Pancham and Sludge Bomb hit Piplup.

"Piplup!"

"Pancham!"

Both Pokemon flew backwards from the hit, and were caught by their trainers before they could hit the ground. Ash looked angrily over at Team Rocket. Jessie was playing with her Z-Ring.

"Oh, no you don't. We won't let you! Let's go, Pikachu!" Ash made an 'X' with his arms and touched the yellow Z-Crystal attached to his ring.

Serena and Dawn watched in awe as Ash and Pikachu seemed to move in total sync, and eventually landed in an admittedly silly-looking pose, with Ash's legs spread out slightly and his arms making what somewhat resembled a lightning bolt.

"Gigavolt Havoc!"

Pikachu's power built, and it soon launched a powerful, tightly-packed lightning bolt at Team Rocket, who were all shivering in fear, unable to move. The move hit all 5 of them and they all screamed as the intense electricity coursed through them. Soon after, there was an explosion that sent everyone flying, up and over the rock formation that held Sootopolis City.

"And we were so close, too!" Jessie said.

As everyone was pouting, James seemed to remember something. "Hey, wait! Where's…"

Team Rocket looked around, looking for something. Jessie, James, and Meowth all grinned excitedly. Meowth spoke up. "Do we actually get to say it?"

James nodded. "I think so!"

They all yelled in unison. "Hooray! We're bl-"

Just then, right below them, from the middle of the Hoenn ocean, they all saw something black and pink leap up out of the water. Defying gravity, it quickly flew all the way up to where Team Rocket was and hit the apex of its jump, catching Team Rocket in its big, snuggly arms. They all looked up to see that Bewear had, once again, caught them.

Jessie sighed. "We come all the way to Hoenn, and it still manages to find us…"

"What is even happening anymore?" The three articulate members of Team Rocket said, exasperated. Bewear flew off into the distance, carrying them all.

Ash and his friends had lost sight of them before this happened, and Ash looked up towards where they had disappeared, a hand over top of his eyes, as if watching a golf ball fly off into the distance. "Good job, everyone! We got the Pokemon back!"

Everyone cheered in response, the unexpected scare now water under the bridge. Everyone began chatting amongst themselves as they prepared to head back into the city proper. It was still only the afternoon, so there was plenty of time left in the day.

Serena approached Ash and pulled on his sleeve. "So, what on Earth was that move, Ash? Was that a Z-Move?"

"Yeah, Ash, that was incredible! I've never seen anything like it!" Dawn agreed, turning to Ash for an explanation as well.

"Yeah, it was a Z-Move! It's kinda like Mega Evolution because you need a Z-Ring and a Z-Crystal to pull it off. But it's different because every Pokemon can use Z-Moves! There's one for every type, but there are some special ones too. Like Lana has one for her Primarina, who can use Oceanic Operetta, which is a Z-Move only Primarina can use. Anyway, that one was the electric-type Z-Move, Gigavolt Havoc. To actually use the move, both you and your Pokemon have to do a certain pose, but I actually don't remember why that is. But yeah, Z-Moves are crazy strong! But you can only use them once in a while, since they take up a lot of energy. Kind of like the Z-Ring has a cooldown time or something, you know?" Ash explained.

Serena nodded, intrigued. "That's sounds amazing, Ash! Do you have any more Z-Crystals?"

"Yeah! I have this one, and then ones for Normal, Grass, Rock, Steel, and Fire, and one specially for Lycanroc." Ash said.

"Wow, that's a lot." Dawn noted.

"No kidding." Ash agreed. "It's hard to keep track of them all sometimes."

"I bet it is!" Serena giggled. "And they're so small! I'm surprised you haven't lost any of them yet, knowing you, Ash!"

"Hey!" Ash yelled playfully. "I'm totally responsible!"

"Yeah, okay, Ash. Whatever you say." Dawn said, a teasing look on her face.

"The last word I would use to describe Ash is responsible." Mallow agreed, giggling, with Lana giggling as well. Kiawe and Brock were grinning as well. Lillie seemed to be on the verge of giggling, although trying to keep her composure.

"Okay, now everyone's ganging up on me, that's not fair!" Ash complained. Pikachu shrugged from his partner's shoulder, as if agreeing with Ash's friends.

"Well, maybe you should just be more responsible, Ash Ketchum!" Serena smiled teasingly, still giggling. She tugged lightly on his sleeve again, causing him to look over at her.

Ash seemed to pout, but it was easy to tell that he was trying hard not to smile. He took his hat off of his head and placed it on Serena's, pushing to brim down so the hat covered her eyes. The hat's fit was too big for her head, so it slid down easily. Ash grinned in amusement.

"Hey!" Serena pouted, lifting the hat up so she could see again. She looked up at Ash with an admittedly cute pouting face. She retaliated by reaching up and ruffling Ash's hair, messing it up.

"Hey, don't mess it up more than it already is!" Ash complained, though not attempting to move Serena's hand away. Everyone else chuckled at the playful scene. After she was done messing up Ash's hair, he did what he could to put it back to "normal", before snatching his hat off of Serena's head and placing it back on his. "Gimme that."

Serena giggled, satisfied with her work.

"Alright, we should head back. The Professors and Sophocles are waiting for us!" Brock called to everyone.

"Right!"

Serena giggled again as she watched Ash lift his hat and attempt to fix his hair again, placing it back on his head when he was done. She laid her head down on Ash's free shoulder, taking his arm in hers and looking up at him.

He looked down at her, playfully annoyed, and trying his best not to smile. Serena giggled.

"What?"

"Nothing. You're cute." Serena said playfully.

"Whatever." Ash grinned in spite of himself, a little embarrassed. They soon followed the rest of their friends back down the path, Serena still clinging happily to Ash's arm.

* * *

"How wonderful."

A tall, well-built man in all black stood at the farthest point of origin cave with a small team of scientists, researchers, and inventors. Down below them, about fifteen or twenty feet, was an enormous pool of lava, which, according to legend, held the resting Groudon.

"How is it looking?"

"All is as calculated, sir. The Blue Orb is reacting. Groudon should be awakened any moment now."

"Good." The man turned on his radio. "Epsilon. How is everything looking for you?"

"Everything is just as we predicted, sir. The Red Orb is reacting as well. Kyogre should be awakened in no time."

"Excellent." The man turned off his radio. "Finally, after all these years, I get to see them with my own eyes. My whole life I've read, I've researched, I've studied."

"BUT NOTHING COULD BE LIKE SEEING THEM UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL!" The man yelled psychotically.

"Now is the time. Soon, Groudon and Kyogre will appear before me. They will wreak havoc across the land, and I will witness it all with my very own eyes!"

"Leader Shadow!"

The man dressed in all black turned to see one of his five trusted commanders reporting with a portion of the Hoenn Division. "Chi, and Hoenn Division Segment C, reporting."

"It is good to see you, Chi. Everything is going as planned. I will need you and Segment C to work to stop any potential threats to the finalization of this experiment. Do whatever it takes."

"Yes sir!" Chi turned to his group of grunts. "You heard the man, move out!"

"Yes sir!" The group all turned and started back towards the entrance, ready to defend the experiment. The Cave of Origin wasn't especially deep, and it was linear, so there would be no fooling anyone. They decided to stay as one big group, standing about 100 yards away from the entrance of the cave, everyone at the ready.

Back at the bottom of the cave, one of the devices' alarms went off. "Sir, it's happening now!"

"Good."

Slowly but surely, the man and his scientists recognized the absolutely enormous form of Groudon rise from the lava far below them. By the time it stood all the way up, it's head was even above them. It looked down at the small group in sheer anger, as if wondering why it had been woken up from a nice nap.

"Ah!" The man's eyes widened as he observed the magnificent creature. "It's more incredible than I ever could've imagined. This is every researcher's wildest dream. And now I finally get to see the legendary Groudon with my own eyes."

The man motioned to himself. "Groudon! My name is Doctor Ivo Shadowfade. I am the leader of Team Sigma. I do not want to harm you. I do not want to control you. I simply want to observe you. Kyogre is being awakened as we speak."

The man then motioned to the wall of the cave. "Now, go, and do battle with your eternal nemesis! I will not stop you, nor will anyone. Go forth, and wreak havoc in a way that only you can!"

Groudon soon roared, causing the entire cave the shake and the group of researchers and scientists to cover their ears. Even the Sigma members at the top of the cave felt as if they were experiencing an Earthquake, and could hear Groudon's roar loudly. Groudon turned around, shattered the wall of the cave with a right hook, and stepped out in the Hoenn ocean.

Groudon was free.

* * *

**So it's all finally breaking down now! Team Sigma is the team I came up with, which isn't really much more than your generic evil team, except that they will likely be a little more adult-like than normal, and might even use some adult language *gasp*. Don't say I didn't warn you. **

**So Team Rocket were the ones that broke into the Wallace Cup! Anyone see that one coming? I included Jessalina in the story to tease Team Rocket's involvement in the story. I also included that whole drinking thing because, well, ever since I was old enough to understand the idea of intoxication, and I saw Team Rocket drinking stuff after they successfully capture a Pokemon, I always liked the idea that they were just getting themselves drunk as a reward for finally "winning". **

**I also included the exchange about drinking as a way to kind of give you guys an idea of where I imagine the characters' ages to be. MatPat's Film Theory on this (which is actually a really good watch, if you're interested) placed Ash right at 20 at the beginning of the Sun and Moon series, which I think is actually pretty fair. So I decided to kind of imagine him as around 20-ish for this story, though it is still ultimately up to your own interpretation, as I won't be saying "THIS IS HOW OLD ASH IS, THE END". I want this story to be the best it can be for everyone, for every reader to imagine things in their own way. **

**Song is "How Wonderful" by NateWantsToBattle, a Deltarune Song about Doctor W.D. Gaster.  
****Highly recommend this song, especially if you're familiar with the lore of Undertale / Deltarune and get all the references! Really fun listen!**


	8. Chapter 8: By Design

**Chapter 8: By Design**

"So, what's gonna happen with the finals, Vivian?"

"They're being postponed to tomorrow." The host answered, smiling. "That was a pretty big scare, even though it turned out not to be a big problem. We had a full evacuation and everything. But the finals will go on tomorrow morning. That'll give your Pokemon some time to recover, too."

"You probably also have to get that wall fixed." Ash said, grinning sheepishly. Serena, who stood just behind Ash, giggled and nodded in agreement.

Dawn laughed. "Yeah, it's got just a small hole in it."

Vivian nodded, chuckling slightly. "You're right. It won't be totally fixed by tomorrow, but the battle doesn't depend on that wall. As long as the big screen starts working, we'll be ready to go. That will give you and your Pokemon enough time to rest up from all the commotion as well."

Serena and Dawn nodded. They were now out of their dresses and in their normal clothes. Everyone was now recuperating after the Team Rocket incident. They stood just outside of the Sootopolis City Pokemon Center, joined by Vivian as well as Officer Jenny.

"It's nice to hear that you all managed to stop Team Rocket, but I'm afraid there might be more than just them up to no good here in this city right now." Officer Jenny admitted.

Ash tilted his head in confusion. "What d'ya mean?"

"While you were taking care of Team Rocket, we had multiple civilians report suspicious activity around the city limits. Apparently a sizeable group of people all dressed in black made their way out towards the Cave of Origin just before you all got there." The policewoman explained.

"I wonder what that could mean." Brock pondered aloud.

"It can't be any good. We know a lot about groups of people who all dress the same." Ash said seriously, crossing his arms and looking over at his older friend, who nodded in response.

Serena, who stood just behind Ash, placed her chin down on Ash's free shoulder, grabbing his arm and looked toward Officer Jenny. Ash wasn't even bothered; he didn't look over to see who it was, he kept his serious expression and his arms crossed. "What else do you know about them?"

"We know they were led by a man with purple hair. Apparently they all have the ancient character Sigma (σ) on their uniforms." Officer Jenny replied, looking over to Serena.

"Sigma…" Ash said, deep in thought.

"An ancient character?" Mallow asked.

"Sigma is part of the ancient language's alphabet. It being used on something like a uniform these days is peculiar for sure." Professor Burnet explained.

Professor Kukui looked serious as well. "We shouldn't assume anything until something happens, though. Let's not jump to conclusions."

"I've still got a bad feeling about this." Brock admitted.

"You and me both, Brock." Ash agreed. He leaned his head over to rest on Serena's, who smiled happily despite the potential danger at hand. Ash was still thinking, even though it didn't seem like there was much to think about. The information provided by Officer Jenny was limited, and all signs seemed to point to some more unfortunate events on the horizon for Sootopolis City.

Just then, everyone heard a huge crash, which sounded like something massive had been broken or shattered. The next sound they heard was an enormous, low-pitched roar.

"What was that?" Ash asked as everyone turned towards the sound, with Serena lifting her head off of his shoulder in surprise.

"I'm not sure, but it sounded like it came from the direction of the Cave of Origin." Brock said.

"It didn't sound very friendly…" Serena noted as she tightly gripped Ash's sleeve, becoming anxious.

"Hey, do you all remember what the Professor said about Groudon and Kyogre and the Cave of Origin the other day?" Lillie asked her classmates, becoming nervous herself.

"Well, sure. Why?" Sophocles asked.

"You're not suggesting…" Kiawe started.

"That was a legendary Pokemon's roar." Kukui affirmed.

"Let's go check it out!" Ash looked to his friends, a determined look in his eyes.

Everyone nodded seriously as they all began to run in the direction of the Cave of Origin.

* * *

"Kyogre, respond!"

At the bottom of the right branch of the Cave of Origin, there was a small team of scientists, led by a tall man with a very muscular build. He rocked a bald head, an angry scowl, and a Team Sigma uniform. The Red Orb, sitting on top of a pedestal of sorts, began to glow. There was a giant pool in front of the men, and the water soon began to move. Something was happening beneath the surface.

The water then gave way. From the middle of the giant pool arose the front half of the body of the legendary Pokemon, Kyogre. It looked angry, like it hadn't wanted to be awoken from its slumber.

"Kyogre! We are Team Sigma. We are not here to hurt you. We want to see you do battle with Groudon. Your nemesis is already awake. We will not stop you, so we encourage you to go find your enemy and fight until the end of time!" The bald man shouted.

Kyogre simply roared at the group, and went back under the water, leaving the cave. Everyone there knew there was a path under the water that led to the outside of the rock formation, where Groudon already was.

The bald man touched his earpiece and spoke. "Leader, Kyogre is awake. We assume that it's off to find Groudon at this very moment."

"Excellent. Well done, Epsilon." A low-pitched, confident voice spoke back. "We have done our job. It is possible that Groudon's roar has stirred up some activity in the city; we need to be prepared, should the police come to oppose our actions. For now, evacuate everyone from down there and meet me and Chi back near the entrance."

"As you wish, leader."

* * *

The group of eleven, plus Officer Jenny, were approaching the Cave of Origin (although Professor Kukui had to carry Sophocles on his back). They couldn't really see too much of the inside of the cave from outside, but as soon as they did enter and their eyes adjusted to the change in lighting, they saw a sizeable group of people, all dressed exactly alike. The group looked at the team dressed in all black, wondering what it was they were doing here. Serena moved a bit closer to Ash, grabbing the back of his jacket again. She was ready to defend herself and her new friends, but she couldn't help but find herself more determined in close proximity with Ash.

Officer Jenny was the first to step forward. "Alright, listen up, you lot! You are being officially questioned by the police department of Sootopolis City! Tell us what's going on here!"

As the information they heard had described, a tall man with purple hair stepped forward. He certainly seemed to be the leader of this group. As he did so, he let a snarky smile cross his face, a bit overconfident. "Hmph. Everyone, stand by for battle."

"Lairon!"

"Shelgon!"

"Dusclops!"

"Seviper!"

The group of grunts, as it seemed, released several of each of the Pokemon they had heard called out, plus some others, such as Cacturne, Sableye, and Manectric. There seemed to be about 4 or 5 of each of those Pokemon.

Ash growled, a scowl on his face. He looked around at his friends. Though some were clearly anxious, they were all prepared to fight back against these thugs and stop whatever it was they were up to. People like Brock, Serena, and Dawn all already had Pokeballs at the ready.

"If it's a battle you want, then it's a battle you're gonna get!" Ash shouted. Pikachu agreed confidently, electricity sparking in his cheeks as if to threaten them. It had been a long while since they had gotten to have a really serious battle, with something more than a grand trial or an Ultra Beast capture at stake. He hadn't had a proper serious battle since saving Lillie's mom. And that hadn't even lasted for all that long, considering he had ended it with only one move. Despite the evident danger at hand, Ash couldn't help but break out into a toothy grin. He had missed this kind of thing.

Serena looked up at Ash to see him grinning his signature grin. It was a grin she had come to adore, but what she had taken note of was Ash's voice. Ash had always been loud, but through all the years of yelling for various reasons, his voice had grown to be quite strong. Now that he was older, his voice went down whenever he got loud, instead of going up. Serena loved the sound of his voice, especially now that he was just about fully grown. His voice wasn't the smoothest or even all that deep compared to other guys his age, but he did sound grown. Even though his voice had gotten deeper, it was still full of life and energy. She gripped Ash's jacket and her Pokeball tighter. She had to shake off her thoughts for now. There was something more important going on. But that didn't mean she was going to let go of Ash just yet.

"Heh heh. Just try and see if you can get past us. We'll stop you dead in your tracks. Or," The purple haired man started. "We'll just stop you dead. Whichever comes first."

"Well, at least you're skipping the bullshit and telling it like it is." Kiawe commented. Lana punched his shoulder. "Ow! Someone had to be the first one to curse! I took one for the team."

Ash grinned wider, adrenaline pulsing through his veins. "I'd love to see you try, purple dude!"

The raven-haired trainer grabbed two Pokeballs from his pocket, and turned his head toward his partner. "Pikachu, let's show 'em what we're made of!"

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed confidently, hopping off of Ash's shoulder and landing right in front of his trainer, once again sparking his cheeks as he growled at the other Pokemon.

Ash threw his Pokeballs into the air. "Torracat, Lycanroc, let's go!"

Ash's two strongest Alola Pokemon appeared from their spherical homes, materializing on either side of Pikachu, both growling at the opposing Pokemon.

Ash looked to his friends. "Well? Are we just gonna stand here? These guys are clearly up to no good, and we're not gonna let them talk to us like that, right? Let's show 'em what we got!"

Brock nodded first. "You're right, Ash. We won't back down now. Swampert, Steelix, let's go!"

Dawn nodded in agreement, grinning at Ash. "Let's get 'em! Mamoswine, Togekiss, come out!"

Serena took a deep breath. She let go of Ash's jacket and grabbed a second Pokeball from her bag. She tossed them both into the air. "Braixen, Sylveon, I need you again!"

"Lilligant, come out!"

"Primarina, let's go!"

"Charizard, you're up!"

"Vikavolt, I choose you!"

Lillie looked on anxiously as her friends all released their Pokemon, all ready for battle. She was shaking every so slightly. She was scared with how little she knew about the situation at hand. She didn't even know if the legendary Pokemon had been awoken, and she knew even less about the Pokemon themselves. She didn't have a whole lot of material to study the legends of other regions with over in Alola.

Lillie looked down at her partner, Snowy, in her arms.

"Vul!"

Lillie was taken aback for a moment; Snowy looked determined as it turned to face her trainer, ready to battle. "Snowy, you… you really wanna battle?"

Snowy nodded, still looking determined. Lillie closed her eyes, steeling herself. All her friends were all ready to battle; despite her inexperience, she knew they would want her help. She just wished she had more experience and more training with Snowy. But she would give her all, no matter what the circumstances happened to be. Besides, she was old enough to be considered an "adult" at this point. There was no reason she should be backing down when the battle hasn't even started.

"Alright, Snowy, you join in, too! Let's battle!" Lillie commanded, shaking away her anxiety for the moment. Snowy jumped out of Lillie's arms and into battle stance.

"I suppose you've left us with no other choice. Arcanine!" Officer Jenny called, releasing her trusty police partner to her side.

Professor Kukui couldn't help but smile at his students' behavior. He was proud of them for being ready to defend themselves; they looked so strong and confident, too. Naturally, Ash had been the one to start it all, given that he was a natural leader (and pretty loud, too, so that made his words extra convincing), but he was still proud of all of them. And it looked like Brock, Dawn, and Serena weren't backing down either.

Still, Kukui wasn't sure about this whole thing. He knew that concealing his identity as the Masked Royal would easily be thrown out the door if his students got into too much danger, but he was skeptical about this. Something felt off. And until he knew what it was, he was going to refrain from joining the battle. He shared a look with his wife, who looked concerned, as if she also knew that something was wrong here. Surely, it hadn't been these people who had made that huge noise.

"That's awfully big talk, kid. So let's see if you can actually back that big mouth of yours up with some real power." The purple-haired man said, throwing his Pokeball into the air. A Metagross appeared from the sphere.

"But whatever power you have, it's nothing compared to what you're gonna see once you know what we've done here!"

"That's enough, Chi."

Everyone's attention was drawn towards a powerful, deep, echoing voice coming from behind the group of Team Sigma members. The big group parted perfectly down the center to make way for tall, lean man dressed in all black. His facial features were mostly hiddened by the darkness of the cave, but he seemed to be in his mid-30s or so, and his face showed only hints of sadism and anger, and not much else. His face was clean-shaven, but his features were rugged. He might've been considered handsome if he didn't look so angry. He looked to be rather emotionless at the moment. However, the group could also see that the man had a sigma embedded the chest of his outfit. The group relaxed slightly and looked at the man and his team of scientists in confusion.

"There's no longer any reason to fight. We have completed part one of the experiment." The man in black addressed 'purple dude'.

The man waved his hand dismissively at the group. "You all are but mere young adults. Kids your age do tend to feel like they can take on the world, when they are really destined to fail. You don't realize what you're getting yourself into, do you?"

"Well, no, actually. We were kinda hoping you would tell us. But purple dude over there wouldn't talk very much." Ash remarked rather plainly.

This got a chuckle out of the tall man. "I see. You seem to be an entertaining and determined group of kids. Well, then, since we have done what has needed to be done already, you can't do much to stop us now. Allow me to introduce myself."

The man motioned to himself and his team. "My name is Doctor Ivo Shadowfade, but call me Shadow. I'm a researcher. I am the leader of Team Sigma. This is just one very small division of our ranks. The man you refer to as 'purple dude' is Commander Chi."

"Enough of this! Tell us what you've done here!" Officer Jenny demanded, losing patience.

Shadow chuckled again. "Very well, officer. What you have witnessed here, what you heard and your encounter with this team here, it was all by design. MY design. I have been planning this for a VERY long time. And now, the day has finally come for my master plan to finally come to life. So I will tell you what I've done. That roar you surely heard?"

Shadow grinned menacingly. "That was Groudon."

The group gasped in shock. "THAT was Groudon?" Kukui inquired.

"Ah, I see you kids do have some chaperones. Yes, my fellow researcher, it was. You see, I have been working for a very long time to accomplish my main goal as a researcher; to see the legends of Hoenn in action, and observe them. Simply reading what vague text we have about them simply does not do justice for me." Shadow said.

Shadow smiled sadistically. "Kyogre has also been awakened by my second-in-command. As I'm sure you're aware; those two are bitter enemies, and have been since this world was created. Their battle here will be catastrophic."

"Why would you do that, knowing that their battle will cause so much chaos?" Brock called to Shadow.

"I have been studying legends for as long as I can remember. I have been working for a very long time to see these beautiful creatures in person. I, frankly, don't care what it costs. I will do anything, sacrifice anything I have to in order to see them in action and to be able to study them." Shadow said. The group listened in horror, realizing just what could really happen due to the awakening of the legendary Pokemon. And some were in somewhat of a shock; this had been sprung on them so suddenly.

"Don't you realize how big this is? How much bigger this is than you? These Pokemon are LEGENDARY. People only see these things on cave walls, or in their wildest dreams. When the world was created, these Pokemon roamed the planet. I'm doing nothing more than restoring the world to the state that it was intended to be in from its creation. And in the process, I'm going to observe them; study them, and their amazing power."

"You're wrong! This isn't bigger than us! This IS us! By doing this, you're putting all of our lives at stake! Not just ours here, and everyone in Sootopolis, hell, everyone in Hoenn, but even yours and your teams' too!" Ash shouted defiantly.

He motioned to Brock. "We have SEEN these Pokemon battle before. I think my friend here would agree that we'd rather not see it again. You release these Pokemon just to let them run wild on the world; who knows what could happen; who could DIE because of this! Catastrophic is probably even an understatement!"

Shadow growled at Ash mentioning that he and Brock have seen the Hoenn legends before. "You, a young brat, has SEEN Groudon and Kyogre, awake, before me, someone who has dedicated their LIFE to studying these Pokemon? I'd watch your mouth if I were you, boy. I know exactly what I've done. And frankly, the fact that you have had the chance to see these Pokemon before I have, and you're over a decade younger than I am, pisses me off beyond what words will be able to convey. So I'd recommend that you don't cross me, or else you WILL pay the price."

"And you piss me off, asshole! You released two of the most powerful legendary Pokemon into the wild to battle each other, endangering all of us on the east side of Hoenn and probably the entire region, and for what? Your selfish research? What kind of research are you doing that could possibly justify you putting all of our lives in danger?" Ash retorted angrily.

Serena put a caring hand on Ash's back, looking worried for her crush. She moved closer to him, becoming anxious. She never really got a chance to see him during the Kalos Crisis back then, so she couldn't remember a time when Ash had looked so angry. His argument was absolutely right, of course, but she knew Ash. She feared that he might let his temper get the best of him, if this argument dragged on for too long.

"Is that what it's like to see from a 'heroic' viewpoint? Hmph. Perhaps, once upon a time, I could've seen eye-to-eye with you, boy. But I lost sight of that a long time ago. I couldn't care less what you think, or what anybody else thinks. I have assembled a team here who are all willing to sacrifice their lives for this cause. We are prepared for anything. And I mean anything. The research I'm conducting is on the creation of this world. How did it begin? How were the regions created, and why are they all so different? By studying the Pokemon that created continents and oceans, I intend to learn more about the secrets of this world's creation." Shadow explained.

"You're an absolute monster!" Serena cried out, tears beginning to form in her eyes at the thought of the danger she and her friends were now facing, and what might happen if the situation got out of hand. She closed her hand that was on Ash's back around his jacket in an attempt to find some sort of comfort in the situation.

"Is that right? I've heard worse." Shadow stated plainly. After he said this, everyone began to hear a sound. It was the distinct sound of pouring rain. Ash and company all turned around to look out of the Cave of Origin and saw that the sky had darkened dramatically. It was pouring extremely heavy rain, heavier than most had ever witnessed. They also saw lightning strike close to them and heard the roar of thunder and felt it shake the earth they stood on.

"Ah, I see Kyogre's Drizzle has already taken effect. It must have gotten out of the Cave now. You see, children, Kyogre doesn't actually cause the thunder and lightning. That's actually a result of Drizzle and Groudon's Drought reaching a stalemate. It may be raining, yes, but could you really imagine this battle taking place under the bright sunlight?" Shadow chuckled psychotically. "Yeah, me either."

The group all turned back around to see Shadow seemingly unfold something metal; it looked almost like a segway, but didn't have wheels and looked much more high-tech. It was a sleek design. Ash, Dawn, and Brock all seemed to recognize the machine from their encounter with Shaymin back in Sinnoh. Shadow stepped on to the vehicle which quickly left the ground.

"Now, if you pests will excuse me, I have some research to do." Shadow stated as he flew his levitating segway above the group and out of the cave before anyone had a chance to say anything in response.

"Hey!" Ash shouted angrily as Shadow flew over his head and out of the cave. "Come back here!"

Ash took off through his friends and sprinted out of the cave. Pikachu, Torracat, and Lycanroc all followed their trainer.

"Ash!" Lillie called as he passed her. The rest of the group looked at each other and nodded seriously, following the raven-haired boy out of the cave.

As the group exited the cave, they were immediately bombarded by the pounding rain and the roaring wind. Ash almost lost his hat, and had to hold on to it to make sure it didn't go anywhere. Ash's friends soon joined him just outside of the mouth of the Cave of Origin, staring at Shadow's shrinking figure as it lifted over the rock formation surrounding the city and disappeared to the other side.

The wind blew everyone's hair violently. Ash stood in the lead as the group formed behind him. He turned around to look at all of his friends. Some were anxious, some were deep in thought, some looked angry, like Ash. They were all returning their Pokemon to their Pokeballs for now, to keep them out of the wind and rain. Ash followed suit and returned Torracat and Lycanroc, while Pikachu bounded up on to Ash's left shoulder. Ash looked back toward where Shadow had disappeared.

He took a deep breath. This was the real deal. This was supposed to simply be a fun field trip. But now, they were involved in something that would determine the fate of Hoenn, and possibly the entire world. It happened very suddenly, yes. A few hours earlier, they were enjoying themselves at the Wallace Cup. But there was no time to think about that. Ash knew that he couldn't just sit and watch as this horror unfolded in front of his eyes. But he also knew that he couldn't afford to let his temper get the best of him. There was far too much at stake. Not just all of Hoenn, but all of his friends were here too.

He could turn to his teacher… or could he? Professor Kukui had never been much of a battler, to his knowledge. He had to take the lead, and bring his friends comfort. Especially people like Lillie, who had become like a sister to him over the past year and a half, most definitely were feeling scared and needed to feel some sort of comfort now. Like always, he was fighting for his friends.

Nobody even noticed as Commander Chi and the small division of grunts filed out the cave and made their way toward a submarine that would take them out of the city and onto a nearby island.

Serena looked up and saw Ash deep in thought. She looked worried for him. He was a natural leader, which she really admired about him; but now, nobody truly knew what it was they were up against. She figured he was probably thinking about what their next step should be. As her short hair was blown by the wind, she huddled up close to her boy, looking concerned for him, and for all her new friends. "Oh, Ash…"

Ash felt Serena huddle up to him on his right side, and looked down at her. He smiled. She was his light in this dark time. Having her next to him always seemed to make him smile. Such a simple thing to make him do so. But he was glad she was there. He felt more confident in himself and in their immediate future just having her next to him. But her anxious look made him even more determined to lead his group to victory; or, at the very least, safety.

Mallow and Lillie were hugging each other, with Lillie nervous and scared, and Mallow trying to comfort her. The green-haired girl didn't know what they were going to do, but she hoped Ash or her teacher would come up with something.

Lana, Kiawe, and Sophocles were huddled up as well, hiding from the rain and wind, hoping to get warm and keep each other from blowing away.

Brock and Dawn both looked upset, as if Shadow's selfishness had struck a nerve with them, just like it had with Ash. They both turned to Ash, who they knew would be their leader in this time.

Professor Kukui looked deadly serious. He held his wife with one of his arms, and held his hat in place with the other. He wasn't sure how to tackle this new threat, but he hoped that, maybe, Ash would know something, given that he's apparently dealt with Groudon and Kyogre before. But none of them knew much of anything about the threat of Team Sigma themselves.

"Ash, I know how you're feeling. You want to get at that guy, Shadow. But we just can't do that right now. Our immediate threat is the battle between Kyogre and Groudon. We need to figure out something to stop those two from wrecking everything. They'll destroy the city in no time flat if we don't come up with something." Brock told his friend.

Ash turned to his older friend and nodded. "I know, you're right Brock. I know you're thinking the same thing I am; we both know what we need to stop those two."

"But how do we get to it? We have absolutely nothing to go on. No way to summon it." Brock said.

Ash's determined look became a little more worried. He looked back over at Serena, who wrapped her arms around his torso to keep herself steady, resting her head on his shoulder. He took her in her arms, holding her protectively against the rain and wind. They all looked out into the dark sky and wondered what it was going to take to stop the entire region from being flooded or destroyed. "We have to figure out something. Without it, I don't know what we'll do."

* * *

A girl with short, dark hair looked into the distance. Above Sootopolis City, and the whole east side of Hoenn, were the darkest clouds she'd ever seen. She saw the pouring rain and lightning strikes all the way from her position on a certain island. Just behind her was a tower whose top was the highest point of elevation in the entire Hoenn region.

Her face was deadly serious. The girl wore a tight-fitted black t-shirt and black short shorts, along with knee-high black socks and black shoes. She wore a torn, gray cape around her neck. She also had a small bag on her back.

"I knew this day would come eventually. Before we do this, we have to check up on that city."

A small pink Pokemon agreed from her arms. The girl looked down and the round Pokemon and smiled. "Perhaps there will be people brave enough to help us, too."

She brought out a Pokeball and released it. "Salamence!"

The blue and red dragon materialized. The girl hopped on to the dragon's back with ease. She stood on its back and gave her command calmly, but there was an evident hint of excitement in her voice.

She had been raised and trained herself for this moment; but now that it was here, she couldn't help but be a bit excited. She found adrenaline pulsing through her now that there was real, present danger. She pulled something out of her bag and stared at it for a moment, contemplating. She held it tightly.

"We will summon Rayquaza. Such is the destiny of the Draconid people. But first, Salamence, fly me to Sootopolis."

* * *

**So finally, you know just about everything you need to know about Shadow for right now! I know it's not a very creative name or anything, he shares a first name with Eggman, but I couldn't really come up with another name for him. To be honest, coming up with an interesting villain is the hardest part about writing stories for me. The antagonist has to have some sort of character I can work with. And it's especially difficult to come up with something that isn't a total ripoff in a world that already has seen so many different villains in its world throughout the years. But once you have a villain with a good personality and clear motivations, it all just falls into place. You have a villain; you have a story. Simple as that.**

**Hopefully Shadow is interesting enough for y'all! I want to give him a backstory at some point down the line, though I don't know when that will be. But until then, keep enjoying all the Amour cuteness coming at you as this story continues!**

**Also, as you surely noticed, Mallow has a Lilligant. Since I kept her Tsareena as a Steenee, I just decided to give her Lilligant to be a viable battler as opposed to her Shaymin or Steenee. That's all. Hope y'all don't mind. ALSO oooo who could mystery girl be (it's pretty obvious) but OOO WHO COULD IT BE?**

**One thing I'd like to address is that many of you were very eager to point out that the Red and Blue Orbs were destroyed back in Hoenn during the Advanced Series. And, while I can't remember that, I'm taking your word for it. But it's far too late to go back now. It's possible I run this story through a friend, and it undergoes some revision sometime later this year. However, as of right now, I'm continuing on as planned.**

**Song: "By Design" by Lightscape, from their 2017 EP "Circles"**  
**This band seriously doesn't get enough attention for how good their music is. If you like modern rock music, I highly recommend you give this EP a spin. It's fucking excellent.**


	9. Chapter 9: Falling Sky

**Chapter 9: Falling Sky**

"Attention, everyone in Sootopolis City! This is a state of emergency. It is imperative that you find an inside space to take cover during this storm. Please stay on the ground floor of the building you're in and don't panic. We have received reports that something is happening outside the city. We're not sure exactly what it is yet, but we encourage you to watch the news, and we will all find out together. Thank you all for your cooperation."

Ash and company were situated in the Sootopolis City Pokémon Center, having just encountered Team Sigma and figured out what was going on. The thunderstorm was still rampant outside, with no signs of letting up. The Pokémon Center was crowded with civilians, trainers, and tourists looking to escape the harsh weather. Some people were still running around outside, trying to find a place to hide during the storm.

Everyone, including Officer Jenny and Nurse Joy, were sitting down around a large table. Professor Kukui had just finished telling Nurse Joy about what they had heard during their encounter with Team Sigma. One look at the faces of the young adults that comprised the group showed that they weren't in good spirits about the situation at hand. No one was sure what to do about this, or if they could even do anything at all.

Kiawe and Sophocles both sat looking pensive, as if trying to figure out something that they could do to help. The three Alolan girls and Dawn were huddled up together, finding warmth in the newfound bitter cold of the pounding rain just outside. Brock was helping Professor Kukui talk to Nurse Joy, both of whom were staying calm and composed. Even Professor Burnet was sitting extra close to her husband, clearly anxious. Serena's head was resting snugly on Ash's shoulder, while he rubbed her back to comfort her.

"You know." Ash began softly, addressing the girl snuggling with him, trying to lighten the mood a bit. "I could really get used to this."

Serena couldn't help but giggle slightly and smile up at her boy. "Well, when boys get older, their shoulders get wider. I always figured that the only reason that could be is so that us girls could use them as a pillow."

Ash chuckled. "I sure can't think of another reason."

Brock and Dawn managed to catch sight of Ash and Serena, and they both let out a small smile and looked at each other in satisfaction.

"Don't worry, guys. We'll figure something out. This can't go on." Brock encouraged everyone.

"Brock is right. As soon as we figure out what we can do to help, we'll all go out and help. Right, guys?" Dawn added.

Kiawe nodded, smiling. "Yes, we will. We'll stop those Team Sigma a-holes for sure."

"Yeah! How dare they try to mess with our field trip!" Sophocles added.

"We'll show them!" Lana exclaimed.

Mallow and Lillie just smiled at each other, then at everyone else.

"I like the attitude, guys." Ash spoke up, and everyone immediately turned to look at him. He did seem to be the de-facto leader of the group. "We'll make sure they get what's comin' to 'em."

"We have breaking news!"

Everyone's attention was caught by the televisions at each corner of the Pokémon Center. The news had begun capturing footage of the storm, and they were now showing footage of the real danger from the air.

"Groudon and Kyogre are rampaging just outside of Sootopolis City! It appears they have been awakened yet again! They haven't met each other just yet, but it's likely only a matter of minutes before they do. This battle could be catastrophic. Everyone on the east side of Hoenn is likely already experiencing this heavy downpour and savage thunderstorm. People, please stay indoors and don't come outside! This could get ugly." A female reporter's voice said through the Pokémon Center's sound system.

Everyone looked at the TV wearing serious expressions as they finally saw the newly awakened legends on either side of the screen, amidst the pounding rain that was slightly hindering the view of the camera and fogging up the lens.

"Ash…" Serena began, anxious. "You and Brock were talking earlier like you knew a way to stop this. What… what is that?"

Everyone turned to look at either Ash or Brock expectantly when they heard Serena's words.

"Yeah… we do." Brock confirmed. "We've seen this happen once before. But not quite like this."

Just then, the door to the Pokémon Center opened and they heard Nurse Joy call out.

"Zinnia!"

Everyone turned toward the door to see a girl, wearing peculiar clothing, which included a cape tied around her neck. The girl turned towards Nurse Joy and smiled. She walked over to the group and stood proudly, looking them all over.

"You all look capable. Who wants to help me put a stop to this craziness?"

* * *

Shadow stood atop the rock formation that surrounded Sootopolis City. He watched gleefully as Groudon and Kyogre slowly made their way towards each other, anxious to see the power they possessed.

"This is how the world was when it was created. Groudon and Kyogre roamed freely, creating continents and oceans. This is how Arceus would have wanted it."

"Leader, the Red and Blue orbs are in the base. They should be close enough to react with Groudon and Kyogre once they get a little closer. It's exactly as you predicted, sir." Shadow heard Chi through his earpiece.

"Excellent, thank you, Chi." Shadow said. "The Primal Reversion process will soon begin. Soon, not a single person in Hoenn will be safe from this legendary collision."

"Let these monsters restore this modern world to its simple origins!"

* * *

Ash stood up after hearing Zinnia's words. "Nurse Joy, you know this girl?"

"Well, sure! Zinnia visits here every so often. She's the last of her kind; the last of the Draconid people." Nurse Joy motioned to the dark-haired girl.

Serena, followed by the rest of the group, stood up as well. She moved herself just behind Ash and off the side slightly, so she could still see Zinnia. "Draconid people?"

"That's right, girly." Zinnia looked to Serena. "Back in ancient times, my ancestors had constant contact with a legendary Dragon-type Pokémon. They could communicate with it and even allow it to Mega Evolve."

"A legendary Pokémon that can Mega Evolve?" Brock asked, shocked at this revelation.

"Indeed. It had been a very long time since it had actually Mega Evolved though. That was, until a couple years ago." Zinnia almost laughed at the thought.

Everyone including the Professors introduced themselves in turn to the Draconid girl.

"It's nice to meet you all." Zinnia said, nodding.

"So, you said something about helping you stop all this?" Ash questioned. Everyone looked to Zinnia expectantly as he said this. Serena put her chin down on Ash's shoulder and grabbed his arm as she gave the new girl her attention. Ash's expression seemed to relax a bit as he felt her make contact with his shoulder, and he moved his head to rest on hers.

Zinnia noticed this and expressed a look of surprise for a quick moment before smiling once again and looking Ash in the eyes. "Yes. You see, I myself know of a way that we can stop this mess. It involves summoning that legendary dragon Pokémon."

"Normally, we wouldn't necessarily have to get it to Mega Evolve for this to work. But if those two," Zinnia pointed at the television, which still showed Groudon and Kyogre making their way towards each other. "Go through with their Primal Reversions, we're gonna need its Mega Evolution."

"You're not saying…" Brock began, in disbelief.

"Rayquaza." Ash concluded seriously.

Zinnia nodded. "Glad you all managed to figure it out. I happen to have something in my backpack that will likely allow it to Mega Evolve. I was planning to go up Sky Tower alone but I came here first to check on the citizens and make sure there was too much of a panic. Luckily, everything seems to be mostly controlled. I was hoping I might find some people like yourselves who might be willing to help me out."

"Hold on." Professor Kukui butted in, in a state of disbelief himself. "You said you have something with you that can summon Rayquaza, AND have it Mega Evolve? That's not something you should say so casually. What is it that you have?"

Zinnia looked over to him. "Oh, it's a meteorite. It was a gift from my grandmother before she passed away. I've never actually tried to use it though. I was taught a way to summon Rayquaza when I was very young, but it was only to be put into practice for an absolute emergency. Rayquaza is the legendary Pokémon we had contact with; so we can summon it at the top of the Sky Tower. The Meteorite should provide Rayquaza the necessary power to Mega Evolve."

"And see this? Right here," Zinnia revealed a necklace that she had hidden under her shirt. It looked to hold a pendant in the shape of a dragon. Inside the dragon's mouth was a rainbow-colored stone with a familiar symbol. "I have a Key Stone already."

"Wow. So Brock and I just had no idea what we were gonna do to stop this whole mess and now some girl shows up and has everything we need to summon Rayquaza and stop it? Huh." Ash said to his friends matter-of-factly.

"You won't hear me complain." Brock shrugged.

"Yeah, me either. We should just go with it, at least for now. She doesn't seem to be bad in any way." Dawn suggested.

Ash felt Serena lift her head off of his shoulder, and he turned to look at him. She nodded, giving him a cute smile. He smiled and nodded back. He turned back to Zinnia. "Alright, we're in. We'll help you."

Zinnia nodded, smiling confidently. "Good. I don't have much of a plan, other than going up to the Sky Tower Peak and summoning Rayquaza and asking it to stop this mess. But I can't really bring every one of you with me, as that would cause far too much disturbance. I'm not a very experienced battler, though my Pokémon and I have trained a lot on our own. I'm worried we may run into some angry wild Pokémon or even part of that Team Sigma or whoever. Maybe I could bring one of you up there with me?"

"I think we know who that has to be then." Brock said.

"The most experienced battler out of all of us!" Lillie piped up excitedly.

Ash stepped forward, grinning. "I'll go with you, Zinnia."

He held out his hand. "I hope we can work together on this."

Zinnia looked at his hand for a brief moment curiously, before shaking it. "Ash, was it? Thank you, I hope so as well."

"As for the rest of you… well… I'm not really sure what you can do. But surely there must be something." Zinnia looked over to the rest of the group.

"Well, we can't exactly attack head on. Anything we sent their way wouldn't even scratch them." Brock said.

"Those are definitely some scary Pokémon." Kiawe agreed. Sophocles shivered.

"Do you think Team Sigma might have a base somewhere?" Dawn piped up.

"Definitely. Any big organization like that must have a base of operations for all their research and machines." Brock nodded, pensive.

"Well then where do you think it is?" Mallow asked.

"It has to be close, that's for sure. It can't be that far away from this area." Brock said. "As far as I understand, the Red and Blue Orbs have to be within a certain distance from Kyogre and Groudon in order for their Primal Reversions to take place."

"So do you think, maybe, if we were able to find their base, and destroy the Red and Blue Orbs, that the Primal Reversions would be cancelled? That would limit their power, right?" Lillie asked.

Brock nodded. "For sure. It's just a matter of where exactly it is…"

"I can't imagine the place isn't heavily guarded, either." Serena pointed out.

"The girl's right. That place is probably thick with thugs." Zinnia agreed.

"So we'll have to be prepared." Mallow said, looking more determined now.

"Well I doubt the place is in plain sight. I don't think a guy as smart as that Shadow guy would just allow his primary base to be out in the open for anyone to find." Dawn suggested.

Ash suddenly grinned. He had gotten an idea. Something unorthodox, that only he would think of. He walked back over to the group and put a hand on Serena's shoulder, causing her to look over at him in surprise. "Think about it. What's the only place around here that would be close enough to Groudon and Kyogre for the orbs to work and still out of sight?"

Everyone looked at Ash, puzzled. Ash then looked directly at Lana. She noticed this, and had a light bulb go off.

"It's underwater!"

Everyone looked towards Lana, surprised at her outburst. She had been quiet up until now. Ash nodded, grinning. "Bingo."

"That's it!" Brock slapped his fist to his palm. "It has to be somewhere in the ocean!"

"And it can't be too far away, either. It still has to be close to this area for the orbs to work properly, right?" Sophocles suggested.

"But how are we going to get there?" Serena asked, a little worried.

Nurse Joy piped up. "Fear not, young ones! We here at the Sootopolis City Pokémon Center are always equipped with plenty of Oxygen Tanks that will last you at least an hour. The citizens here dive into the ocean all the time. I'll go get some for you."

"Thank you so much, Nurse Joy!" Dawn said excitedly as Nurse Joy scrambled off to the back room.

"I suggest you all stick together down there. If you all get separated, it'll be hard for you to find each other again." Zinnia said.

Everyone nodded, agreeing with her suggestion.

"So then, what's the plan for when we get there?" Lillie asked.

"Not sure. It'll likely depend on what exactly we see when we get in. We should also try to find it as soon as possible, so we have time to find a way inside that isn't the main entrance. Surely the main entrance is guarded, either on the outside, or as soon as you go inside. Although given that it'd be underwater, I'd guess that it's guarded entirely on the inside. We'd need to find another way in." Brock said.

"Do you think they're holding the two orbs in the same place?" Sophocles asked.

"Doubtful. From the looks of what we saw in the cave, there were two separate teams of scientists that were researching each orb and legendary Pokémon. They'll likely be in separate places." Brock concluded.

"So we'll split up then, right? How about we split up by girls and boys?" Dawn suggested.

Brock looked around at everyone for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, that'll work. We'll just go off in separate directions and hope we end up at opposite orbs."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Kiawe said.

"We got this, everyone!" Mallow said, determined. She hugged Lillie tightly in excitement, adrenaline now beginning to take her over as she understood what they were getting into. She was scared, but she was excited.

Ash suddenly noticed that Professor Kukui had just gotten off the phone with someone. He decided not to ask, because he had other plans. "Okay guys, we know what we're doing. Everyone get prepared, I have a couple things I wanna do first."

He looked at Serena, then Zinnia. "I'll be back in just a second."

Ash then took off in the direction of the video phones, and after a quick talk with someone, and what looked like a Pokéball transfer, he bolted back outside into the rain, on a mission for… something. Serena watched him run off, a worried look on her face. Of course, he'd be fine, it was only a storm, but she was more worried about his excursion up the tower with Zinnia.

As everyone chatted amongst themselves, discussion battle strategies and other things, Nurse Joy came back with a bunch of compact oxygen tanks and color-coded wetsuits. They all seemed to be conveniently fit for the person intended to wear it. They seemed reminiscent of the class' Ultra Guardian uniforms. The wetsuits were all black with small colored lines in a particular pattern on the sleeves, legs, and body. The lines were Orange for Brock, Purple for Dawn, Pink for Serena, White for Lillie, Green for Mallow, Blue for Lana, Yellow for Sophocles, and Red for Kiawe.

After everyone had gone and changed into their respective wetsuits (which had garnered some attention from the many people occupying the Pokémon Center), the automatic doors opened and Ash and Pikachu re-entered, absolutely drenched. He had something in a small black bag which was tied by a string at the top. He smiled when he saw Serena and approached her.

"Here." He said as he placed the bag into Serena's hands. It felt like some kind of stone, and a very smooth one. "This is for you. Don't open it yet. Open it when you need it. Well… I don't even know if you will or not, honestly."

Ash laughed a little in embarrassment. "But I figured it was better safe than sorry. Just in case, you know?"

Serena stared at Ash, her face showing gratitude, love, concern, and confusion all at once. Before she could say anything, Ash began to walk over to Lillie.

Pikachu jumped from Ash's shoulder on to Serena's. She looked over at him, still a little confused.

"Pika pika." Pikachu seemed to reassure Serena. The honey-blonde began to smile. She scratched under Pikachu's chin, remembering his favorite spot.

"Thanks, Pikachu." Serena said softly. Pikachu happily nuzzled his sure-to-be partner-in-law.

Lillie had been feeling a little nervous; scared, even. This was bigger than any Ultra Guardian mission; it wasn't just a town or single place that was in danger, this was the whole region, possibly more than that at risk. She knew that she couldn't back down, and she wanted to be able to help her friends, but that didn't stop her from feeling anxious about it all. She only hoped that she could overcome her fear with her friends by her side.

Ash caught her attention as he got closer to her. She looked up at him in confusion. Ash brought out a Pokéball and handed it to her, smiling confidently. "Lillie, take Zorua with you. His illusion ability might be useful."

Lillie looked surprised as she looked down at the Pokéball Ash had given her. She then steeled herself, looking more determined, and then looked back up at Ash. She nodded. "Thank you, Ash."

Before she could even think, Lillie was suddenly wrapped in Ash's arms. It wasn't really a tight, worried hug, but more like a caring, relaxed hug. Lillie closed her eyes and hugged Ash back, melting into his shoulder and taking handfuls his jacket.

"Ash… you've been nothing but incredibly kind to me since we met. Your enthusiasm is so infectious, and you may be goofy at times, but your passion and heart are amazing. I've been able to look up to you as a role model when Gladion is away. I appreciate you so much. Thank you… thank you for being my big brother." Lillie said, beginning to tear up as she pulled away and looked up at Ash.

Ash was surprised to hear Lillie open up to him like that. He looked down at her, surprised for a brief moment, before smiling at her softly. "Be careful down there. I don't think I could stand to see my little sister getting hurt."

Lillie was surprised at what she heard; how Ash had so easily embraced her feelings. Ash had this uncanny ability to connect with others so easily; something she envied very much. She smiled, wiping a tear from her eye, and nodded. Ash nodded back, smiling confidently.

Mallow quickly approached Ash and hugged him as well, with Ash just barely seeing her and catching her in time before she tackled him to the ground. She spoke into his shoulder. "Please be careful, Ash."

"I will, Mallow. You too. Protect Lillie for me while I'm gone." She pulled away and nodded.

"You can count on me." She said as she put her arm around Lillie, to which the blonde girl blushed slightly in embarrassment. Ash nodded.

Ash then proceeded to fist bump his other classmates, including Lana. "Good luck out there, you guys."

"Same to you, Ash. Kick some ass for us." Kiawe said confidently.

"You got this, Ash." Lana said, smiling up at him.

"Come back in one piece." Sophocles added.

"Definitely." Ash grinned.

He then turned to Dawn and Brock. The three wasted no time coming into a group hug. "I know this happened all of a sudden, you guys, but I know we'll get through this. We always do."

Brock nodded. "You're right, Ash. We always do. Be careful up there."

"Yeah, Ash, don't do anything too stupid." Dawn added, looking simultaneously mischievous and concerned for her friend.

"I don't know if I can promise that one, Dawn. You know me. But you guys be careful too. You're both gonna have to lead your groups in that base. Be strong for not just them, but for all of us and the people up here too." Ash said.

"We will." They said together, nodding. The group hug finally separated.

Finally, Ash turned to Serena. She looked at Ash with love and concern in her eyes, Pikachu still on her shoulder and holding Ash's gift in her hands. She quickly put the gift in her bag and ran towards him as Pikachu jumped off of her shoulder. She threw her arms around his shoulders and he caught her in his embrace, hugging her tightly and lifting her off the ground slightly before placing her back down.

"Please be careful, Ash." Serena simply said into his shoulder, also not caring that his clothes were drenched. She was in a wetsuit anyway.

"You too, Serena. I won't be there to protect you, but you're strong enough to do that yourself." Ash said softly.

"But I just like having you there with me anyway." Serena said. She might've giggled if the circumstances weren't so serious.

"And I like having you with me." Ash said. "But we'll get through this."

Serena nodded into his jacket before looking up at him. "Come back to me. Promise?"

Ash looked down at her and nodded, smiling. "Promise."

Serena gave him a cute smile before standing on her tip-toes and kissing Ash on the cheek, earning a collective "aww…" from their friends. Serena blushed in embarrassment. Ash looked a little surprised for a split second before going back to his confident smile. As Serena pulled away from Ash's face, the two just happily stared into each other's eyes for a brief moment before separating.

Kukui walked past the group and towards the entrance, his hand above his eyes like he was watching a golf ball fly. "That was faster than I thought."

Everyone approached the window to see what he was looking at. It only took a quick moment for them to recognize the six flying figures that were now descending towards the Pokémon Center. "Our Ultra Guardian rides!"

Ash looked over to Professor Kukui in understanding. "So that's why you were on the phone!"

Kukui turned to Ash and nodded, smiling. "Yep. I called Lusamine and she sent them our way. They even brought their Pokéballs so you all going underwater can bring them with you."

"That's wonderful!" Lillie said, feeling relieved that she'd have Altaria, considering her Snowy wasn't exactly the most seasoned battler.

"So, then, what will you be doing, Professor?" Mallow asked him.

Burnet approached Kukui and he put his arm around her. "Burnet and I will stay here and do some research into the legendary Pokémon and help out around here. We'll keep everything under control while you all do your thing."

"Before you all go, I just want you all, specifically you five," he looked at his class sans Ash. "How so very proud I am of you for being able to step up to this terrifying challenge, and even help come up with a plan, and be so vehemently determined to fight alongside your friends to stop this catastrophe. I know you all will come back unscathed as long as you fight as a team."

Everyone nodded, looking determined. After he finished speaking, the Ultra Guardian rides landed outside the Pokémon Center, prepared for battle. Professor Kukui went outside briefly and grabbed the Pokéballs and handed them off to their respective riders. Everyone except Ash returned their rides to their Pokéballs.

Ash finally looked to Zinnia, who was waiting expectantly. "Well? You ready?"

"You bet, Zinnia. Let's do this." Ash said confidently as Pikachu returned to his perch on Ash's shoulder and cried out in agreement.

Zinnia nodded. "I like your attitudes. Then let's go. Get on that Garchomp and I'll lead the way to the Sky Tower."

Ash nodded, and he followed Zinnia as they walked outside and into the storm. Zinnia brought out her Salamence and jumped on to it. Ash quickly hopped on to Garchomp's saddle.

"Let's go!" Ash called as both Salamence and Garchomp left the ground. They began flying to the southwest. Serena and the rest of the group watched as Ash and Zinnia flew off into the distance.

"Be careful, Ash." Serena said softly to herself.

Zinnia and Salamence were a little in front of Ash, Pikachu, and Garchomp. They had only been flying for less than a minute before Zinnia turned back to look at Ash. "Hey, Ash."

Ash looked to her. "What's up?"

"You and your girlfriend are pretty cute."

* * *

**And so the action begins next time! Should be a lot of fun!**

**Sorry about the slow updates, y'all. I was really busy these past couple weeks with my summer job and it left me absolutely exhausted every time I would come home afterward, leaving me with little motivation to work on anything. But now my summer job is done and I have a couple weeks before I go back to school. In that time, I'm gonna try to get as many chapters done as I can! I don't know if I'll slow down once school starts up again, but I don't foresee it being as big of a problem as my job was.**

**This also feels like a good time to talk about my plans for this story; or rather, STORIES. Yes, I am planning for AT LEAST one sequel, if not, four. No, that's not a joke. This story won't be all that long; definitely less than 20 chapters. So this story will be done probably within the next 2-3 months. The reason why this isn't gonna be that long is because I originally planned to put all 4-5 of these stories into one book. Then I just decided to separate them to make it easier for me and more organized. So that's why my story isn't as fleshed out as I'd like it to be. So I spent some time recently fleshing it out some more, and hopefully it'll all turn out good. Thanks for sticking with me!**

**Also, I haven't actually decided who's story I want to cover first! The next two chapters will either focus on Ash and Zinnia at the Sky Tower or the rest of the crew at the Team Sigma base! Let me know which one you'd prefer to see first! The two chapters after that will focus on whichever one y'all didn't pick. So it doesn't REALLY matter, but I haven't actually decided so feel free to give me your input!**

**Song: "Falling Sky" by Red from their 2015 Album "of Beauty and Rage"**  
**This album is incredible. Basically it's a dark, haunting musical theater show in the form of a hard rock / metal album. Listening to this all the way through is an EXPERIENCE. Highly recommend.**


	10. Chapter 10: Pyxis

**Chapter 10: Pyxis**

Ash, Zinnia, and their Pokémon partners finally landed at the foot of the Sky Pillar. They both dismounted their rides. Zinnia returned her Salamence to its Pokéball. Ash thought back to what Zinnia had said to him during their ride to the tower.

_"Huh? Girlfriend?" Ash asked, confused._

_"Yeah, the cute blonde with short hair. Serena? She is your girlfriend, correct?"_

_Ash rubbed the back of his neck, slightly embarrassed. "Well… not exactly…"_

_"Really? Could've fooled me. You two were really cute together. I can tell just by the way she looks at you, that she's very much into you. And the way you two trust each other so much is really a great thing." Zinnia said, smiling._

_"Well, of course we trust each other! I would trust Serena with anything. We've been through a whole lot together so I know that I can trust her, and I hope she knows she can trust me just as much." Ash said confidently, with Pikachu chiming in as well._

_"Well then, Ash, if she's not already your girlfriend, I suggest doing everything in your power not to let her get away. That's the type of trust you don't see very often. It's really something special. And that look in her eyes tells me she wants nothing more than to be by your side. I would keep her around, if I were you." Zinnia said._

Ash briefly contemplated her words. He knew that he felt different, if only slightly different, about Serena, compared to his other friends. Her presence made him feel happy, her attitude and passion inspired him, and her cute smile lit up the world. As much as he liked thinking about that smile of hers, he didn't have a whole lot of time to. Not when the looming Sky Pillar stood right in front of him and his new friend. They were looking it up and down, standing at the bottom, both unfazed by the storm.

"So, how come we can't just fly to the top?" Ash asked Zinnia.

Zinnia chuckled. "If only it were that easy. There's actually an invisible barrier of wind close to the top. Basically, if you fly up past that point close to the tower, no matter how fast or how heavy you are, you'll be sent flying back down by wind. Supposedly, it was put in place by my ancestors, the Draconid people, because back then, the trek up the tower was used as a trial of sorts. Not sure what that trial was for, but whatever the answer, we still can't fly up to the top. We have to go the long way."

"That barrier or whatever has got another thing comin'!" Ash mounted Garchomp once more. Pikachu, knowing his partner was about to do something reckless, jumped off Ash's shoulder and on to the ground before Ash said anything else. "Let's fly, Garchomp!"

"Ash, wait!" She reached her arm out towards Ash and Garchomp, but the dragon-type launched itself off the ground and straight up towards the top of the tower. Zinnia watched them ascend and sighed.

"Pika pi?" Zinnia's attention was caught by Ash's partner standing next to her, looking up at her, concerned.

Zinnia smiled. She bent down and began to scratch the mouse's head, much to his delight. "Don't worry, Pikachu, he'll be fine. He won't be hurt. I understand the feeling of wanting to find out things for yourself. Honestly, I kind of admire that."

Pikachu scurried its way up to Zinnia's shoulder and found a comfortable perch, and nuzzled her face happily. Zinnia giggled. "You're a friendly one, huh?"

Ash's face was being repeatedly hit with massive raindrops and the forceful wind as he rode Garchomp vertically up the side of the tower. Garchomp was one of the fastest dragon-types around, so it was practically no time at all before they were nearing the highest point of the tower. Right before Garchomp reached the top, its momentum was forcefully pushed to a stop, even managing to push it back down several meters. This sudden change almost caused Ash to fly off of his ride, but he closed his eyes and held on tight to ensure he didn't fall. Garchomp hovered in the air just under where its momentum had stopped, wondering what exactly had just happened.

Ash opened his eyes, confused. He looked around and saw that they hadn't actually been able to fly higher than the tower. He looked up again. "Try again, Garchomp! But, slower this time."

Garchomp slowly began to increase its elevation, only to be once again forced to a stop and pushed several meters down. Ash frowned, sighing. "I guess Zinnia was right. That sucks."

Zinnia watched expectantly as Ash and Garchomp slowly reached the ground, Pikachu still perched on her shoulder. Ash looked sheepish as he dismounted and returned Garchomp to its Pokéball. He rubbed the back of his neck. Zinnia sighed and shrugged. "You should've just listened to me, Ash."

"Sorry, Zinnia. I just wanted to see it for myself. Not like I didn't believe you or anything, I just needed to see for myself to really believe it. Gotta exhaust all my options before I try to climb this giant thing." Ash said, motioning to the tower.

"It's okay, Ash. I learned a lot about you from that. I really admire your attitude. It will certainly help us get up to the top here. Even I don't really know what we'll come across." Zinnia told him.

Ash chuckled sheepishly. "Well, thanks. I say let's get moving, then!"

Zinnia nodded. "Agreed. Let's go."

Ash nodded back, holding out his arm towards Zinnia, who looked confused for a moment, before Pikachu jumped off of her shoulder and back onto Ash's arm and finding his place back on Ash's shoulder. Zinnia smiled at this. She could tell the trust between those two was just as, if not more, strong as the trust between Ash and Serena.

As the two entered the opening in the front of the tower, they both took a moment to dry themselves off. Pikachu hopped off of Ash's shoulder and shook the moisture out of his fur.

"Nice to be out of that storm, huh, buddy?" Ash asked, grinning at Pikachu. The mouse smiled back and nodded.

Ash turned to Zinnia to see her smoothing out her hair and getting the water out of it. She had seemed to be the rather quiet, reserved type to him. From what he could tell, she didn't have a whole lot of experience around people. That was very different to him and his own experience. He was easily able to connect with people without even having to try, having been surrounded by lots of people since Professor Oak's summer camp where he met Serena. He figured he was going to have to reach out a little bit more than usual to make sure that he and Zinnia were able to work well as a team.

"Hey, Zinnia. I know we're probably gonna run into some danger as we're climbing, but you don't mind if we chat for a bit, do you?"

"Well, I'm not a big fan of small talk, but go ahead. What do you want to know?"

"So, do you have a dream? A goal for yourself, at all?" Ash asked, genuinely curious.

Zinnia seemed to smile sadly, looking down at the floor. By this point, everyone had settled into the damp, cold air of the inside of the tower and had sufficiently dried themselves. Pikachu took his place on Ash's shoulder and they began to walk in the direction of the first staircase.

Zinnia looked up slightly. "I don't, at the moment."

The dark-haired girl stayed quiet for a moment. Ash looked over at her with a gentle expression, silently encouraging her to elaborate. She saw this look and figured that she could trust him.

"...I honestly can't even remember a significant amount of time where I've been too far away from home. My grandmother only passed away a few months ago. She raised me, so it took a big toll on me. But because of that, I've never really had the chance to go anywhere too far away. I can tell you're well-traveled, and that you're great around people. I'm… not. The only friend I've ever truly had was my grandmother. I've never met my parents. But, if given the chance, I would not hesitate to explore the world. The inheritance from my grandmother would surely be enough to allow me to do that." Zinnia explained.

Ash and Zinnia began to ascend the first staircase as he gave her a confident smile. "Why wait? Once this whole mess is over, there's nothing stopping you. I think everyone, especially people our age, should have some kind of goal for themselves. It pushes us forward, gives us motivation to go on when we don't have anything going our way. For us, we're young. We should have long-term goals for ourselves for when we get older; we should identify who we want to be as we get older."

They both reached the top of the stairs. Ash continued. "I can tell you're a strong girl. If you don't have it figured out yet, I know you will soon."

Zinnia smiled gratefully at Ash. She hadn't known him for long, but she could tell he was completely genuine and kind, which she appreciated.

"So, uh, real quick, that was a lot of stairs. How many floors are there to this thing?" Ash said sheepishly. Pikachu sweatdropped from Ash's shoulder.

Zinnia sighed. "Ash, we've only just started. There are five floors in total, including the top. We'll have to climb three more staircases just like that one."

"Great." Ash sighed, already exhausted given the thought of all that climbing.

"Pika." Pikachu seemed to scold his trainer for not wanting to climb so far.

"Don't give me that, Pikachu. You don't have to climb anything other than me to get to your spot."

Pikachu seemed to grin slyly before proceeding to nuzzle his trainer's face happily. Ash sighed, but smiled in spite of himself. "Yeah, yeah, I love ya too, buddy."

Zinnia giggled. "You two have a great relationship. You're like brothers."

Ash turned and smiled at her. "Yeah, that's for sure. Pikachu's somethin' alright."

"Pika!"

The second floor of the Sky Pillar looked to be completely empty; not a single Pokémon or person in sight. It was a little dark; only small openings in each wall let what little light there was outside into the enclosed space. It was like a deserted old ruin with nothing in it; just an empty room made of old stone with old, peculiar-looking designs or drawings on the floor, walls, and ceiling.

"Empty… this is kinda givin' me the creeps." Ash said, looking slightly anxious. Pikachu agreed, shuddering.

Zinnia said nothing as she looked around the room. She seemed to be looking for something, but Ash had no idea what it could be.

They walked directly the stairs on the other end of the room with no disturbances. They climbed the next set of stairs and reached the third floor. There, Ash took his first step onto the main floor and his eyes widened as he stopped in his tracks.

"Zinnia…"

"What's wrong?" She asked as she stepped foot on third floor next to Ash. She almost immediately stopped in her tracks too, looking around the room, and understanding why Ash had stopped and looked confused.

Around the edges of the room, huddled small groups of dragon-type Pokémon. Altaria and Swablu, Shelgon and Bagon, even the occasional Gible. They all looked to have recently been attacked or ambushed, as they seemed frightened by the presence of Ash, Pikachu, and Zinnia, and some of the Altaria and Shelgon seemed to have sustained injuries. The small groups were sizeable in number, lining almost every inch of the walls of the third floor.

Ash looked around, his face falling at the sight of these scared Pokémon. "These guys…"

"They were attacked. Brutally, at that." Zinnia said plainly, her face turning into a scowl.

"Who could've done this?" Ash looked to her.

"Not sure, but from the looks of it, I don't think it was a Pokémon native to this tower. Someone must've brought in an invasive species to wreak havoc on these innocent wild Pokémon." Zinnia said, looking at the injuries sustained by the larger Pokémon.

"You think Team Sigma could've done that?" Ash said pensively.

"It's more than likely. But why would they target the Sky Pillar?"

"You don't think they knew someone might try to summon Rayquaza, and they set this up as a way to keep that from happening? Like, maybe they're waiting for us at the top?"

"There's only one way to find out." Zinnia stated simply. She started marching towards the other end of the room, where the stairs led to the fourth floor; the penultimate level of the Sky Pillar.

Ash nodded seriously and followed along, still deep in thought. Pikachu, from Ash's shoulder, looked sadly at all the wild Pokémon who were frightened or injured, the bigger ones standing defensively by their families or friends. Ash and Zinnia were careful not to interact with any of the wild Pokémon so as not to frighten them further or get into a fight that they didn't need to have.

As Ash and Zinnia reached the stairs and began to climb towards the fourth floor, they began to hear plenty of heavy footsteps walking around above them, as well as some deep, angry growling. Zinnia put a finger to her lips, signalling for Ash and Pikachu to stay quiet, to which they both nodded in response. Zinnia motioned for Ash to stay put and she climbed the stairs slowly, peeking her head just above the floor so she could see what they might be up against. Zinnia's eyes went wide very quickly after she got a good look at what was occupying the fourth floor, and ducked back down, her eyes wide in shock.

"What's up?" Ash whispered.

"Take a look for yourselves."

Ash and Pikachu peered onto the floor and were also shocked by the sight. Wandering around the fourth floor were a large group of miscellaneous dragon-type Pokémon; most of which were native to other regions. Three or four Gabite and Fraxure, as well as a couple Druddigon and Zweilous, all of whom were wandering the room, like they were guarding the place. At the helm of this takeover operation seemed to be the Pokémon looming at the far end of the room, guarding the stairway, levitating off the ground, its three heads looking in all different directions and looking angry and ready for a fight.

"These Pokémon… they're all-"

"Not from here." Zinnia finished. "This has to be the work of humans. How dare they tread foot on this sacred ground and attack the wild Pokémon. I will make sure that whoever is responsible for this receives their receipt."

"That Hydreigon seems to be the leader of this ragtag group." Ash noted to no one in particular. "It looks really tough, that's for sure."

"We're in for a fight." Zinnia nodded, still looking intently at the Hydreigon on the opposite side of the room.

"Do you think they belong to a trainer?" Ash asked.

"Doubtful. They may be a 'ragtag group', as you described them, but they look like they still operate with a pack mentality, with that Hydreigon leading that pack. Given that they likely don't belong to any trainer, they have no inhibition and will likely not think twice to not only injure our Pokémon, but even us, too." Zinnia said seriously, not taking her eyes away from the three-headed dragon-type.

Ash nodded, understanding the situation. He looked around again. "With all the Pokémon wandering around, I don't think we're gonna be able to ambush. It looks like the only way to get up to that top floor is to just walk right up there and force our way through."

Zinnia said nothing as Ash looked to her for a response. He then turned to Pikachu. "You don't see anything else we could do, do you buddy?"

Pikachu seemed to scan the room before shaking his head. Ash then grinned at his partner. "Good. I wouldn't have it any other way. Let's do this, Pikachu."

Ash stomped his way up the rest of the stairs, past Zinnia, who snapped out of her trance and saw Ash making his way past her, looking a bit shocked and confused, wondering what he was planning to do. "Ash, wait!"

Ash put his foot down hard as he finally stepped foot onto the main floor, catching the attention of all the dragon-types, who immediately turned and growled threateningly at him and Pikachu.

Ash grinned confidently, adjusting his hat and then looking back up at the menacing Pokémon. "Listen up, you big, scary dragons! You may be big and have sharp teeth and powerful moves and the numbers advantage, but if you think we're gonna let you just come into this old tower thing and do whatever the hell you want, you got another thing comin'! We have a Garchomp! And… a small yellow mouse! And… whatever Zinnia has."

Zinnia walked up to stand next to Ash as the dragon-type Pokémon seemed to have no reaction to Ash's speech. "Really? That's your victory declaration?"

"It sounded cooler in my head."

Zinnia shrugged. "Well, it's done now. Salamence, come out!"

"Garchomp, let's go!"

The two huge dragons emerged from their respective Pokéballs, both letting out a loud roar. The Gabite almost seemed to flinch slightly at the sight of Ash's ride Pokémon. However, all the wild dragon Pokémon were growling and slowly closing in, moving towards the opposite end of the room.

Ash and Zinnia both stood confidently behind their dragons, wearing grins on their faces. Pikachu leapt off of Ash's shoulder and stood in between the two huge dragons, grinning like his trainer and sparking his cheeks, ready for battle. It provided a somewhat comical image, almost like the small mouse was the de-facto leader of these two huge dragons. Ash might've laughed if he wasn't so focused on the dragons opposite them.

All of a sudden, Ash heard growling from behind them. He quickly whirled around to see more Gabite, Fraxure, and a single Druddigon leading that small group emerging from the dark corners of the room behind them. All of a sudden, they were surrounded.

"Zinnia! Behind us!"

Zinnia whirled around and saw the dragons moving towards them from the back corners of the room. Zinnia became slightly anxious. "So they were planning an ambush from the start. They couldn't have planned that themselves. Someone must've told them to do that."

Ash grunted in understanding. "You're probably right."

As all the dragons began to close in, they formed a circle around Ash, Zinnia, and their Pokémon. Ash faced the far end of the room, while Zinnia faced the back, their respective dragons in front of them, prepared for battle. Pikachu once again sparked his cheeks and growled.

Ash and Zinnia were both backing away slowly from the oncoming dragons, and eventually backed into each other. They stood back to back for a moment, both surprised, before Ash grinned. Standing back to back with a friend, surrounded by enemies, outnumbered… this was the kind of battle Ash lived for. Without moving his head, he looked toward Zinnia.

"You trust me, right?"

Zinnia hesitated for a moment, caught off guard by the question. Ash then felt her posture relax a bit, like her nerves were slowly melting away. She smiled, Ash's confidence infectious.

"Of course."

"And I know I can count on you, too." Ash said confidently, louder now. "Let's do this! Garchomp, Dragon Rush!"

Garchomp jumped off the ground, rearing back and taking off towards the group of dragons, enveloped in a blue, dragon-shaped light. It crashed into a Fraxure and a Gabite, sending them both crashing into the walls of the tower, effectively removed from the battle already.

"Now, Fire Blast!"

Garchomp took a breath and sent out a five-pointed blast of flames towards a Druddigon, landing another direct hit and even causing a burn, knocking the oddly-colored dragon to the ground, still feeling the effects of the burn.

"Salamence, Dragon Claw!" Zinnia called.

The light blue dragon took off toward the Druddigon in the back, flying incredibly quickly and landing yet another direct hit, causing it to fly backwards and crash into the back wall, falling to the ground, out of the battle for the moment.

"Aerial Ace!"

Salamence, just like Garchomp, flew directly into a Gabite and Fraxure, sending them both flying back in the wall next to the collapsed Druddigon.

"Use Dragon Pulse!" Ash called.

Garchomp formed and then sent a condensed sphere of energy flying toward a Gabite, who was sent crashing back by it, and crashed into a Fraxure, both of whom crashed into the wall of the tower, also temporarily knocked out.

"Pikachu, Electroweb into Iron Tail!"

Pikachu leapt into the air and formed some of his stored electricity into a ball and sent it flying toward a Druddigon. The sphere expanded after making contact with the dragon and captured it in a web pulsing with electricity, effectively trapping it in place. Pikachu then raced towards the Druddigon and sent it flying into the wall with an Iron Tail to the stomach.

"Dragonbreath!" Zinnia commanded.

Salamence let out a huge breath of dragon energy fused with the air toward the remaining Gabite and Fraxure in the group that had approached from behind them. It hit both of the dragons, landing two more super-effective direct hits and sending the two crashing to the ground.

"Zinnia! Help me with these Zweilous!"

"I'm with you, Ash!"

"Garchomp, Dragon Rush!"

"Salamence, Dragon Claw!"

Both Pokémon flew towards different Zweilous as the two two-headed Pokémon could only watch in horror as the huge dragons flew with enormous velocity towards them. Both Garchomp and Salamence connected, sending the dragons flying backwards, landing on either side of the Hydreigon. The leader had simply watched the battle unfold thus far, though it looked more angry than ever by this point.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu once again leapt into the air and collected its electricity and launched two different lightning bolts towards the Zweilous, landing two final direct hits and causing the Zweilous to collapse, both defeated.

Ash and Zinnia, knowing they couldn't celebrate just yet, turned their attention to Hydreigon.

The three-headed Pokémon roared angrily. Before anyone could blink, it launched a Dragon Pulse that Garchomp attempted to block with its arms, eventually managing to disperse the energy. The attack had still managed to cause noticeable damage, and had pushed Garchomp back several meters as it was blocking.

"Garchomp, you alright?"

The dragon nodded its head yes, though it was panting by now from blocking the attack and from the energy it had exerted taking out the other wild dragons.

"Leave this to me, Ash."

"Huh?"

"Salamence!"

Zinnia took her necklace out from under her shirt, holding her fingers against the key stone it held. "Mega Evolve!"

The key stone and Salamence's Mega Stone, held on a metal band around Salamence's neck, formed a connection of rainbow colored light as Salamence began to glow and change form. Its body became more sleek, its wings becoming more aerodynamic. As the light dissipated and revealed Mega Salamence, Ash was looking on in amazement.

"Whoa… Mega Salamence…"

"Pika…"

Hydreigon didn't seem to be all too impressed and began to fire up Dragon Rush, flying quickly at Salamence. Just as Hydreigon was getting close, Salamence seemed to disappear; it moved so quickly that nobody could see it dodge the Dragon Rush. It reappeared just off to the side of Hydreigon as it flew to a halt, confused as to how it missed.

"Dragon Claw!"

Again, as if disappearing into thin air, Salamence flew up to Hydreigon and slashed it with Dragon Claw, sending it flying back into the wall. However, unlike Hydreigon's minions, Hydreigon was resilient and angry enough to will itself back into the air fairly quickly.

"That's one tough Hydreigon." Ash commented.

"Fire Fang!"

Salamence once again took off and appeared behind Hydreigon as it made its way forward, landing another direct hit into the neck of the biggest head of the dragon with Fire Fang. The three-headed dragon cried out in pain.

"Aerial Ace!"

Salamence tackled Hydreigon out of midair with Aerial Ace, crashing itself and Hydreigon into another wall.

"Finish this with Dragonbreath!"

Salamence landed yet another direct hit with the super effective move, finally causing Hydreigon to collapse on the floor, defeated. Salamence growled in satisfaction and reverted back to its normal form. Zinnia approached her partner and rubbed its head. The dragon smiled.

"Thank you, Salamence. You deserve a rest." Zinnia said softly as she returned it back to its Pokéball.

"You too, Garchomp. Return." Garchomp nodded to Ash and it dematerialized into its Pokéball.

Ash then approached Zinnia, grinning. He held up his hand. "Great work, partner."

Zinnia looked at Ash, surprised for a moment, before smiling back at him. She high-fived him. "Thanks. You too, partner."

Ash looked up. "So, what do you think is up top?"

"It's not nothing, unfortunately. Let's go find out."

Ash nodded as Pikachu hopped back onto his shoulder. They approached and climbed the final set of stairs and eventually reached the top floor of the Sky Pillar. They no longer had to stand in the rain, as the top floor was above the low clouds that had formed thanks to Kyogre's Drizzle. As they stepped foot onto the main floor, they heard a female voice.

"Stop there."

Ash and Zinnia's attention was drawn to a woman standing at the opposite end of the floor. She had the Sigma symbol on her top. Her outfit was similar to the Commander Ash had seen earlier, Chi. She had a slim figure, long, dark brown hair and amber eyes; quite a pretty woman. She wore a frown on her face, standing with her arms crossed, facing Ash and Zinnia.

"I am Zeta, Team Sigma Commander. And I will not let you go through with this."

* * *

**Sorry I took so long with this one, y'all! I just moved back into school so it's all been a little crazy. I will hopefully have another chapter ready next week and won't leave you on this cliffhanger for all that long!**

**I honestly feel like not having Zinnia in the Pokémon Anime was one of the biggest missed opportunities of the entire show so far. I loved Zinnia in the games, so I really wanted to make sure her relationship, at least with Ash, was emphasized in this chapter so they could work together well as a team in the next chapter without it feeling forced or out of nowhere. It only gets more interesting from here, so I hope you'll stick with me!**

**Also, I hope you all were paying attention during the last chapter (9) because I mentioned something very briefly in that chapter that will come into play next chapter! Let me know what you think it is and we'll see if you're right!**

**Song: "Pyxis" by Home from his 2014 Album "Before the Night"**  
**Some really solid lo-fi action for you. This song is really nice, and from my research, a Pyxis is a greek type of vessel, a boat of sorts sailing through the night or through a storm. I really liked that idea and thought it fit here.**


	11. Chapter 11: You Ain't Ready

**Chapter 11: You Ain't Ready**

"I will not let you go through with this."

Ash stood facing the commander, Zeta, with Zinnia standing just behind him. Ash looked serious, yet the corner of his mouth was turned up in a half-grin. Finally, a serious battle.

Zinnia walked up to Ash and put a hand on his free shoulder and whispered to him. "I had a feeling they'd have someone waiting up here. They couldn't just leave this place open to us."

Ash turned his head slightly and nodded. "Don't worry, this is nothing I can't handle."

Ash walked forward slightly, with Zinnia withdrawing her hand from his shoulder. Ash spoke, his voice emanating strongly into the sky. "And what makes you think you can stop us? You guys recklessly put the entire Hoenn region in danger, you can't expect us to just sit there and let you do that, do you?"

Zeta growled. " Which is exactly why Shadow placed me here. He knew that someone might potentially try to summon Rayquaza. Most people wouldn't know how. But you managed to make it past the dragons we put on the floor below us. So now…"

"... I have no choice but to make sure you don't get past me."

Ash grinned confidently. "So, how about a battle then? If you don't have your Pokémon, you can't stop us, can you?"

"Perhaps not, but I was ordered to do anything in my power to keep people away from the altar behind me. So, that's exactly what I'm going to do. For the sake of Team Sigma and Shadow's ambitions."

"... So, is that a yes?"

"Altaria, come out!" Zeta called, throwing a Pokéball into the air and allowing her dragon-type to materialize in front of her.

Ash grinned again. "I guess it is."

Ash took a Pokéball out of his pocket but was stopped by Zinnia putting a hand on his free shoulder again. Ash turned to look at her. "Are you sure you can handle this? She looks strong. And I don't think she'll hesitate to aim for you, too."

Ash nodded. "Don't worry. She can aim for me all she wants, I can take it. There's no way I'm gonna let her stop us."

Pikachu jumped off of Ash's shoulder as he threw his Pokéball into the air. "Lycanroc, I choose you!"

In front of Ash, the orange wolf-like Pokémon materialized. It howled and took a battle stance.

Without hesitation, Ash called out a move. "Accelerock!"

The orange wolf took off from its standstill and before Zeta could blink, Lycanroc crashed into Altaria, sending it flying into the ground just behind Zeta. The Team Sigma Commander gasped in shock once she realized what had happened. "How did you-"

"Fast, right? I'm glad you noticed." Ash said, grinning confidently. Lycanroc howled in agreement.

Zeta growled. "Altaria, up! Use Dragon Pulse!"

The dragon-type was able to recover from its initial shock and fly up several meters above the ground, launching a Dragon Pulse, albeit slightly weaker than normal, towards Lycanroc.

"Dodge, then Rock Throw!" Ash called.

Lycanroc jumped to avoid the Dragon Pulse, then surrounded itself with shards of sharp rock, sending them flying towards Altaria.

"Cotton Guard! Block it!"

Altaria put up a thick wall of heavy cotton, blocking its entire body and keeping any of the rock shards from dealing any damage.

Zinnia seemed to get an idea while watching the battle unfold. Keeping her eyes glued to Zeta, she began to tiptoe her way around the edge of the circular floor. She was hoping she might be able to make it to the altar and start the ritual without being noticed. She tiptoed even slower than normal just to ensure she wouldn't immediately catch any unwanted attention.

"Use Sky Attack!"

"Counter with Accelerock!"

Altaria cloaked itself in a blinding white light, flying downwards towards Lycanroc, while the wolf Pokémon began running towards the dragon-type, leaping off the ground for a head-on collision. When the two Pokémon did collide, it caused an explosion of smoke to spread across the sky. This hid Zinnia's continued trek toward the altar, but she dared not try running for it. She was sure that she would be heard.

As the smoke eventually cleared, both Pokémon looked to be feeling pretty tired, though Altaria was clearly more damaged than Lycanroc. Ash's wolf Pokémon looked like it could still go for a while. Altaria looked like it was getting really tired.

Zeta growled, but her attention was caught by something else over to the side. She grunted. "Altaria, Dragon Pulse."

Altaria quickly shifted its attention over to the side, firing Dragon Pulse right in front of Zinnia, causing her to panic and scramble backwards to avoid being hit.

"Think you could sneak around me, did you? While I admire your courage, no such thing will work on me." Zeta said.

"Zinnia, don't worry." Ash gave her a reassuring smile. "I've got this. Just sit back and let me take care of it."

"Also, I'd prefer it if you weren't sent flying off the edge of the tower. Leave the jumping off of towers to the expert over here." Ash told her, grinning.

Zinnia looked at him for a moment, before sighing a shrugging. "Even in the middle of an intense battle, you have to crack a joke. Well, I guess I'll leave up to you, Ash."

Ash grinned in thanks and returned his attention back to the battle.

'_So we already used the element of surprise, so she knows about Accelerock. So that won't work. That means we probably can't get in close to use Bite, especially not while it's flying like that. We also can't use Rock Throw without it being stopped by Cotton Guard. Stone Edge won't work either unless Altaria is closer to the ground. How do we catch them by surprise again…?'_

Ash then suddenly flashed back to the last time Altaria used Cotton Guard and had a lightbulb go off in his head. '_Of course! Altaria can't see anything while it's using Cotton Guard! We've got one chance to pull this off.'_

"Lycanroc, you ready?" Ash pumped his fist and grinned. Lycanroc snarled in response, taking a battle stance.

"Use Rock Throw!" Ash called.

Lycanroc once again surrounded itself with rock shards, sending them flying towards Altaria.

"Ha! You still think that's going to work? Hmph. Use Cotton Guard." Zeta said, feeling cocky.

Altaria once again put up the Cotton defense, blocking the Rock Throw from doing damage. Ash grinned.

The move dissipated after the Rock Throw had ceased, and Altaria was able to look around again. But Lycanroc was nowhere to be seen. Zeta had been busy watching the Rock Shards break on the Cotton Guard that she hadn't realized Lycanroc had quickly made its way over to her side of the floor. Altaria looked around for Lycanroc but couldn't find it anywhere.

"Huh?" Zeta only saw Lycanroc as it eventually skidded to a halt and leapt off the ground in a backflip, leaping all the way above Altaria. Now higher than the dragon-type, the only way from here was down.

"Altaria, above you!"

"Bite down, Lycanroc!" Ash called.

Just as Altaria shifted its attention to the wolf Pokémon above it, Lycanroc had fallen and bit down on one of its wings, causing the dragon-type immense pain. It cried out in agony, still levitating in the air with the wolf on its wing. They were beginning to descend now, with Altaria having an issue keeping itself in the air. "Oh no, Altaria!"

"Now, throw it!"

Lycanroc used its downward momentum and its grip on Altaria's wing to launch it down into the ground, now that it was having issues flying. Altaria crashed into the ground with a loud thud, but still not even coming close to damaging the old tower.

"Stone Edge!"

Lycanroc landed and then stomped its front two paws into the ground, causing a trail of huge stones covered in blue light to rise out of the ground. They continued to appear in sequence until one rose from the ground right below Altaria, sending the dragon-type flying into the air. It cried out in pain again. Eventually Altaria landed back on to the ground, unable to battle.

"Altaria!" Zeta called out, horrified.

Ash walked up to Lycanroc, who was still growling at Altaria, but calmed down as it felt Ash approaching. Ash knelt down and scratched its head. "Great work, Lycanroc. You battled really well."

Pikachu agreed from the opposite side of the orange wolf Pokémon, leaping up on top of it. Lycanroc nuzzled its face against Ash in appreciation. "Hey, cut it out!"

Zeta sighed, returning Altaria to its Pokéball. "Once again, I have failed you as your trainer. You don't deserve to have me command you. I'm sorry."

Ash heard this, and he immediately looked up at Zeta, his face falling into a frown. "In a battle, you and your Pokémon have to work as a team, as a unit. You have to be in sync. If you lose, it's not one side's fault. No matter what happens, it's always a team effort."

"Hmph, you wouldn't understand. I failed to see that Lycanroc was right in front of me, and Altaria lost because of that. If I had been a better trainer, Altaria would have avoided that." Zeta looked away, closing her eyes. "Pokémon are creatures far too wonderful and pure for us disgusting humans to be commanding them around like we do."

"Is that what you think? That Pokémon should be taken away from humans?" Ash asked her, raising his voice now.

"It may be what I _think_ but I _know_ it's the right thing. And you cannot convince me otherwise."

Ash smiled at Pikachu and Lycanroc. "We'll just have to see about that."

Ash stood up, retreating back to where he was standing before. He turned around to face Zeta. "Pokémon may be awesome, but that doesn't mean us humans can't be friends with them. The only reason I'm able to battle so well with all my partners is that I take the time to get to know each one and become friends with all of them. I love them and they love me. It's a mutual love and respect. That's why my Pokémon trust me enough to listen to what I tell them. Without that trust, we wouldn't be able to do anything together. I had to earn each and every one of their trusts. Sure, it's me telling them what to do, but we all work as equals, and friends. That's how it should be."

"What do you know about how it _should_ be? You're practically just a kid!" Zeta yelled. "You speak as if Pokémon and humans can work together as equals? Ha! As if! Humans are a disgusting race, we only started capturing Pokémon for our own selfish desires, forcing them away from their homes and families just to put them into meaningless battles until they can't stand up anymore. That's why I will follow Shadow until he accomplishes his goal of restoring the world back to its origins!"

"Huh?" Ash said, surprised. "He never told us that one. Either way, you're wrong. And my Pokémon and I are going to show you that. Show us what you've got!"

"Aggron, appear!" Zeta called. The Iron Armor Pokémon appeared before her, towering over Ash and Zeta and letting out a fierce and intimidating roar.

"The Pokémon I have are Pokémon that I took in. I would never force any wild Pokémon away from their homes. These Pokémon were lonely and sad, and I gave them a home. But I never wanted to put them into battle. I'm only doing this to keep you from stopping us! I won't let you summon Rayquaza!" Zeta yelled angrily.

Ash returned Lycanroc to its Pokéball. "Thanks Lycanroc. You did just what you needed to."

"Well, first of all, I won't be summoning anyone. You can look at her for that. I'm just the hired protection." Ash grinned, motioning to Zinnia, who facepalmed at his remark. "But my friends and I love a good battle, and this is a lot of fun. But now it's time for a friend who hasn't had a good battle in a long time. He's been itching to get back into it. So I hope you're ready."

Ash grabbed the brim of his hat, pulling it down and securing it back onto his head. "Sceptile, I choose you!"

Ash's Hoenn Ace, the Forest Pokémon, materialized on the floor, kneeling down on one knee and looking down. It finally stood up and let out a fierce battle cry.

Ash grinned. "It's been a while, hasn't it, Sceptile? You ready for a real battle?"

Sceptile nodded, seeming to grin confidently, just like his trainer.

Zeta hated to admit it, but her opponent's talk about Pokémon being friends was bringing back memories of her childhood. A time in her life where nothing mattered except for having a fun time with her friends. Even though she hated it, she remembered someone precious to her. She shook her head, forcing the memories away. She was a new woman now.

"Aggron, Rock Slide!"

From seemingly nowhere, dozens of rocks began to fall towards Sceptile. Ash and Sceptile looked up simultaneously to see the rocks begin to descend. Ash growled.

"Dodge, Sceptile!" Ash swung his arm out in front of him to emphasize the command.

Sceptile was able to swiftly dodge the rocks as they continued to appear above him. His speed had noticeably improved. He ran towards Aggron as the falling rocks finally began to slow down.

"Use Leaf Blade!"

The leaves on Sceptiles arms began to glow and extend into sharp blades. He spun around once for momentum before swinging both of his arms right into Aggron's body, causing it to cry out in pain. However, it stayed upright, only losing its balance slightly. After a few seconds, it managed to shake off the attack and regain its balance.

"Now, Leaf Storm!" Ash called.

Off his rebound, Sceptile turned 180 degrees and a swarm of high velocity winds and glowing leaves began to fly towards Aggron from his long tail.

"Iron Head! Break through it!" Zeta called out, growling.

Aggron surrounded itself with an intense white light and began charging forward, breaking through the Leaf Storm fairly easily.

"Pikachu, on my shoulder." Ash said quietly, growling slightly. Pikachu obeyed, reclaiming his perch on Ash's shoulder. "Use Quick Attack to dodge, Sceptile!"

Sceptile, leaving a trail of white light in its wake, took off and was easily able to dodge the oncoming charge from Aggron. However Aggron didn't stop after Sceptile dodged. It continued on directly towards Ash and Pikachu. Ash took a few steps out of Aggron's path, knowing that it probably wouldn't be able to turn while charging. Aggron charged right past Ash, missing him completely. After this happened, seeing Zinnia wasn't in its path either, Aggron finally lost its glow and began to skid to a stop.

"Aiming for the trainer, huh? That's pretty low, lady." Ash grinned confidently. "Now, Leaf Storm again!"

Sceptile once again leapt into the air and launched Leaf Storm from its tail, this time making contact with Aggron while it was still skidding to a stop after charging with Iron Head. It dealt a good chunk of damage and caused Aggron to roar out in pain again.

"Steady, Aggron! Use Flash Cannon!" Zeta called, growing ever angrier as Sceptile began to take the upper hand in the battle.

"Use Dragon Pulse to counter!" Ash commanded quickly.

Sceptile once again leapt high into the air. Aggron turned around and opened its mouth to launch a beam of bright white light towards the Forest Pokémon, while Sceptile opened its own mouth to fire Dragon Pulse towards the oncoming Flash Cannon. The two powerful moves collided in the air and caused a huge explosion of smoke to cover the entire peak. Ash couldn't see anything.

"Now, Aggron, Double-Edge!" Zeta called quickly, hoping to catch her opponents off-guard.

Aggron began to charge directly through the smoke with Double-Edge, towards where Sceptile had landed back on the ground. Aggron was able to see Sceptile's silhouette through the smoke. Double-Edge was faster than Iron Head, so there was less time for Ash to react. Though Ash didn't really need that time; he knew just how fast Sceptile was. He also was sure that Sceptile could see and hear where Aggron was coming from.

"Jump, Sceptile! Back towards me!" Ash called quickly.

Sceptile once again leapt high into the air, easily avoiding Aggron's Double-Edge and landing back in front of Ash with ease.

"Now, Quick Attack into Leaf Blade! Let's finish this!" Ash called, grinning confidently.

As the smoke began to clear, Sceptile took off at an alarming speed directly towards Aggron as the leaves on its arms once again began to glow and shift into sharp blades. As Aggron began to try to stop and it ceased its Double-Edge, before it had a chance to turn around and refocus, Sceptile was already there. He spun around once and crashed directly into Aggron again, this time with much more speed, this time causing huge damage and causing to fully lose balance and fall over, facing Zeta. It collapsed to the ground, unable to battle. Sceptile landed back in front of Ash, grinning. It was clearly proud of its work. Ash grinned as well. Hopefully they could finally end this now.

"No… it can't be…" Zeta said quietly, in shock.

Ash walked up to his Hoenn Ace and fist bumped him, grinning happily. "Great work, Sceptile. It's great to have you back."

Sceptile nodded, happy to be back with his trainer.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu held out his fist to Sceptile as well, smiling happily. Sceptile fist pumped Pikachu, nodding in acknowledgement and grinning back at his comrade.

Zinnia smiled. She realized just how lucky she was to have stumbled across someone with such passion and strength as Ash. Not to mention how genuine, kind, and funny he was. She appreciated Ash for all of those things. She hadn't had too many real friends before, but she somehow already felt comfortable around Ash, especially having opened up to him briefly earlier. '_That Ash sure is something else.'_

Ash then returned his attention to Zeta, his face again falling into a frown as she returned her Aggron to its Pokéball.

"You see how well we're able to battle together when Trainer and Pokémon treat each other as equals and put their trust in each other?" Ash called out.

Zeta closed her eyes tight and shook her head violently, as if trying to shake a horrible nightmare out of her own mind.

Ash and his Pokémon walked towards Zeta, and stopped when they were just in front of her, but looking past her and towards the altar where Zinnia would summon Rayquaza. Zinnia wasn't far behind.

"Look, lady. I don't really know anything about you. I don't know what you've been through or what kind of things you've seen. I don't even know your real name. But I do know one thing. You're right, Pokémon _are_ amazing creatures. But when it comes down to it, they're not that much different from us. Just like us, they're all individuals and unique from one another. No two Pokémon are exactly alike. They all want to live full lives alongside friends and have a lot of fun. So when us humans and Pokémon treat each other as equals, we can all do just that. The world would be a much better place if everyone just realized how lucky we are to be here in this world with Pokémon." Ash said seriously, looking her straight in the eyes.

Zeta fell down to her knees, still in a state of shock. She had failed her mission. She had Pokémon left, but Aggron was her strongest one, and now the memories were flooding back into her mind, with no sign of leaving.

"I don't know what that dude Shadow is really up to with all this, but you've got to see that he's putting so many people and Pokémon in danger by doing all this. Our world as we know it is at risk of completely collapsing if we just stand by and let this happen. That's why we're here. We love this world that us people share with Pokémon. So we're going to protect it, no matter what." Ash was smiling now, as were his two Pokémon.

Zeta continued to shake her head. '_No! I know that Shadow's ambitions are pure. Humans _are _a plague to this world! They must be! We're all horrible! We put Pokémon in danger with our selfish and greedy acts! Pokémon would never be friends with us. We don't deserve them…'_

'_There must be some good in her. If she were truly dedicated to this cause, she wouldn't hesitate to retort. Something's going on.'_ Zinnia thought. She stepped forward, next to Ash.

"Remember this, Zeta. Pokémon and humans can work as equals. You just have to put in the effort. Make the effort to understand your Pokémon, care for them. Show compassion and kindness, and no one will force anything. Many Pokémon will choose to leave their homes to become people's Pokémon. We can all live in harmony if we simply make the effort to." Zinnia said before walking over to the altar to begin the ritual.

Zeta was still in shock. It looked like she was having a battle with her own mind. She was obviously conflicted on what to believe after seeing Ash and his Pokémon. She stayed perfectly still, knelt down on the ground, eyes wide. She eventually put her head in her hands, wondering what exactly her world had come to.

'_Oh, Shinx. I'm so sorry…'_

Ash frowned as Zinnia stepped on to the altar. "You know what you're doing, Zinnia?"

Without looking back, she answered. "Well, yes, but I am a bit nervous. I've never done this before, after all."

She didn't turn back because she didn't want Ash to see the pink tinge in her cheeks. The idea of finally getting to see Rayquaza firsthand excited her beyond belief.

Ash crossed his arms and looked over at Pikachu on his shoulder, still frowning slightly. "Okay…"

Zinnia knelt down on one knee. "Let us begin."

* * *

**First of all, I just wanted to give all of you my sincerest apologies for not updating sooner. School recently caught up with me, and that's my priority first over this. I promise I'll try to do better from here on out. Updates won't be as frequent as they used to be, but I will try to update every other week. I can also now confirm that this story will have 18 chapters.**

**Who noticed that in Chapter 9, I specifically drew attention to Ash making a Pokéball transfer in the Pokémon Center? Anyone? That was where Sceptile came from. Rowlet may be a funny meme, but in a serious situation like this, he just doesn't quite fit, does he? He was great in his battle with Hau's Decidueye and all, but that just became a meme too, didn't it?**

**Anyway, the next two chapters will move to focus on the rest of the group and their invasion of the Team Sigma base and their attempts to be rid of the Red and Blue Orbs. I know I kinda left you on a cliffhanger here, but I want to emphasize that these last two chapters and the next two chapters are happening simultaneously.**

**Song: "You Ain't Ready" by Skillet from their 2019 Album "Victorious"  
****This Album divided opinion; I'm on the side of liking it (at least for the most part). This song is a great pump-up track; and the lyrics almost perfectly match how I imagine 20-ish-year-old Ash's values in life and his confidence. And it also kinda matches how "not ready" Zeta turned out to be for the battle. Thought it was a good fit here.**


	12. Chapter 12: Aqualotic

**Chapter 12: Aqualotic**

"Please be careful, Ash…"

As Serena turned around, she was met with teasing smirks from most of her new friends, except for Lillie and Brock, who were simply smiling. Dawn approached her and put an arm on top of her shoulder and leaned in toward her. "I see you, girl! That was _so_ cute!"

Mallow walked over and leaned on her opposite shoulder. "So, you and Ash, huh? You two _would_ make a pretty good match, and it was super cute when you kissed him just now."

Serena was blushing heavily, looking embarrassed. "You guys…"

Lillie and Lana stood beside Mallow and Dawn, respectively, smiling over at Serena. Lillie was the first to speak up. "You two are so cute together! I love it!"

Lana cracked a sly grin. "I ship it."

Kiawe shrugged, chuckling. "I honestly didn't think he had it in him."

Sophocles nodded, looking up at Kiawe. "Me either."

Brock laughed. "You two have no idea."

Professor Burnet blushed bashfully, squealing in delight. "Oh! How adorable! Ash and Serena would make such a great couple, right, Kukui?"

Kukui nodded thoughtfully. "They sure would."

"S-shouldn't we focus on getting into Team Sigma's base?" Serena asked, smiling sheepishly as she tried to shake off her embarrassment with all her female comrades surrounding her.

"Serena's right, you guys. We have a job to do." Brock said, becoming serious.

Dawn sighed. "Alright, I hear you."

She then leaned in close to Serena. "But you're not off the hook yet, sister. After this is all over, I wanna see some progress."

Serena laughed nervously in response. "R-right."

As everyone began to shift their attention away from Serena, they formed a huddle as Brock began the strategy meeting.

"Alright, everyone. Here's how I think we should go about this." Brock started.

"We'll start by taking a submarine down into the ocean. I doubt anyone is really leaving Sootopolis right now because we're protected by the rock formation that surrounds the city. So the citizens aren't in any real danger unless it breaks." Brock started.

"And there's only one real way out of the city, right?" Dawn asked.

Brock nodded. "Right. There's only one underwater passage out of the city. If we swam from here, we'd only waste our limited oxygen supply. But once we get out, the base could be anywhere. And we don't even know for sure that it's underwater at all. It's only our best guess. Though I'd go as far as to say it's fairly likely. Once we're out, we'll split up into three or four groups. Each group needs to have a water-type Pokemon if we want to split up. Any suggestions for the groups?"

Lana quickly piped up. "I can take Kiawe and Sophocles since neither of them have a water Pokemon."

Mallow was next to speak up. "I want Lillie with me. But neither of us have a water-type."

Serena smiled at them. "Then I'll go with you two. Mudkip can help us out!"

Lillie smiled at her, relieved. "Thank goodness! We'd love to have you along, Serena!"

Dawn smiled at Brock. "I guess that leaves you and me, Brocko. Piplup and I will do our best!"

"Piplup!"

Brock smiled back. "Thanks, you two. That all sounds good. Everyone good with those groups?"

"Yes!"

"Alright. From there, each group will go in different directions. We should try to get too far away from each other. If one group spots the base, have your Pokemon use a move to create some kind of disturbance that the rest of us will feel. From there, we'll need something to create a bright enough light to see from a distance underwater." Brock concluded.

"Don't Chinchou live here in Hoenn? Would that work?" Lillie asked.

"That's a great idea, Lillie, but I don't think they'll be hanging around right now with Groudon and Kyogre storming about. Plus, if they used an electric-type move, we'd probably all get hurt by it." Brock said.

Lillie's eyes widened, and she immediately closed her eyes and shook her head, as if wondering to herself why she had brought up such an idea at all. "I hadn't even thought about that."

"Here."

Everyone's attention was caught by Nurse Joy handing them three fairly large flashlights. "Take these with you. They're completely waterproof and have an SOS mode where it will shine extra bright and flash really quickly. That should work."

Brock took them from Nurse Joy gratefully. "Thanks so much, Nurse Joy. You really are a huge help."

Nurse Joy giggled. "Think nothing of it. It's the least I could do."

Brock handed one flashlight to Mallow and another to Kiawe. "This will work just fine. Once we all meet up again where the base is, we'll work from there to get in. It's probably fair to assume that we shouldn't use the main entrance, as it's likely guarded heavily just inside. However, if push comes to shove, we'll do what we have to."

"Question, Brock. What the heck are we supposed to do if we do manage to get our hands on one of the orbs?" Dawn asked.

Brock brought his hand to his chin, deep in thought. "Hm, good question. I'm not sure we can just smash them. We don't know what the effects of that would be or if it's even possible."

"I'm thinking that those scientists that we saw in the cave are probably monitoring them around a bunch of expensive equipment. Since, you know, they're right in the middle of reacting with Groudon and Kyogre, right?" Sophocles spoke up.

"Right, and they're not gonna give those up without a fight, too." Brock nodded. "Plus, if we just smashed them, we'd be destroying some pretty damn important artifacts that date back who knows how far."

"The creation of the freakin' planet!" Dawn shivered at the thought. "That's a long way back!"

"So you're saying we can't smash 'em?" Kiawe asked, upset.

"Then I suppose we should just take them from their places and escape? That seems like the best way to go about it, since I can't imagine we can just stop them from reacting with Groudon and Kyogre by asking nicely." Lillie said.

"And then at least Team Sigma won't have them anymore. We can turn them in to Wallace or something. He probably knows what to do with 'em, right?" Mallow asked.

"Wasn't he formerly the Gym Leader here? I'm sure he does. That's probably the right idea." Serena agreed, smiling.

"Alright, then. Everyone know the plan?" Brock spoke up, looking around at everyone.

"Yes!"

"One last thing: whatever you do, do NOT go above the water. Groudon and Kyogre are out there, and they're gonna be making all kinds of disturbances in the water and it will only be worse if you go above the water. We need to keep our risk of getting hurt minimal. Hopefully we won't be close enough for them to really affect us, but only time will tell." Brock said seriously.

Brock then grinned and put his hand in the middle of the huddle. "Now let's band together and get this done!"

Everyone smiled and put their hands in.

"Let's do this!" Dawn encouraged.

"I'm ready for a real fight! It's been a while since I've gotten to go all out. The flames of Wela Volcano are burning inside of me!"

"Ash is out there right now doing his best. Let's all make sure to do our best, too!" Serena piped up.

"Then let's stop stalling and get out there!" Brock finished.

"Right!"

* * *

"You all sure you know what you're doing?"

"That's a bit generous." Sophocles said, sweat-dropping.

"Oh, wah wah, boo hoo. You're part of this too, man. We've got no time to think about that now. We've got some evil villains to stop!" Kiawe yelled pointedly.

Mallow stepped between the two. "Now now, boys, we all have to work together here! Let's not argue, okay?"

Kiawe calmed himself down. He took a deep breath. "You're right."

Brock turned back to the submarine pilot. "We'll figure it out. Thanks for bringing us down here."

The pilot smiled sheepishly. "Sure thing. Just as long as you guys know what you're getting into. I sure don't."

Suddenly, Lillie seemed to perk up. She faced her friends. "Guys, I think I have an idea. Maybe we can take the main entrance after all."

Brock looked over at her, puzzled. "What do you mean, Lillie?"

Lillie retrieved Ash's Pokeball and let Zorua out. The Tricky Fox Pokemon materialized on the floor of the submarine right in front of Lillie. It looked around for a moment, confused, before recognizing all of Ash's friends.

Lillie knelt down and scratched the fox Pokemon's head. "Hi, Zorua. Ash entrusted you to me for a while. Won't you help us out, please?"

Zorua smiled and nodded. It was typically mischievous, but, just like its trainer, it knew when it was time to flip the switch to become more serious.

"Okay, here's what I want you to do. All of us are going to be swimming to find a secret underwater base. Our hope is that we'll be able to sneak in through the main entrance somehow. If that happens, the next time I let you out of your ball, I'm going to give you a thumbs up. If you see that, I want you to disguise yourself as a…" Lillie pondered for a brief moment. "Gorebyss, and find the nearest guards. They likely won't suspect anything. Then, when they get close, you let them have it with Night Daze!"

"That's a great idea, Lillie!" Mallow chimed in.

Zorua nodded, understanding the plan. Lillie gave Zorua a sweet smile and scratched its face. "Okay, perfect. Be prepared, okay?"

Zorua nodded, giving Lillie a grin in return. Lillie returned Zorua to its Pokeball and stood back up.

"Depending on what that entrance is like, that could definitely work." Brock agreed.

"Here's the thing, Brock." Sophocles started. "The more I think about it, the more I think that the base has something like a carrier extension; a mailbox of sorts. Something that will bring in outside cargo or even people from the water up to the main entrance. That's probably the only way to really get in. I doubt they have any use for windows; and besides, even if we did go in through a window, we'd only be screwing ourselves over because the whole thing will just start flooding. We'd have to be in and out fairly quickly. We can't put ourselves at risk like that."

"Hm… I see what you mean. If that really is the case, then Lillie's idea really could work. We could all find a way to sneak into that mailbox or whatever it may be, preferably with some cargo so we could hide, and then let Zorua loose on the guards." Brock pondered aloud.

"And if the entrance isn't like that, we can always just barge in from the front!" Kiawe added, almost yelling.

Lana sweatdropped. "You're a little too excited about this, aren't you?"

"Hey, that's always been Ash's strategy and it hasn't failed him yet." Dawn chimed in.

"You're certainly not wrong there, Dawn." Serena added, giggling.

"It's always nice to have a backup, I suppose. Even if that backup _is_ just barging in. We'll do what we have to." Brock agreed. "Alright, now that that's settled, let's get moving. Everyone, let's find that base!"

"Yeah!"

A hole in the floor of the submarine opened up, and one by one, everyone put their oxygen tanks in their mouths and entered the ocean. They split up into their groups, with each going a different direction. Lana, Kiawe, and Sophocles held onto Primarina. Mudkip easily towed along Serena, Lillie, and Mallow, while Piplup took Dawn and Brock. By holding onto their Pokemon, they were able to actively search the area, and at a much faster rate, since their water-types were able to swim much faster than any of the trainers could.

They saw wild Pokemon all over, though most were actively frightened. Every so often, they could all feel a small disturbance, like an underwater wave pushing or pulling them slightly. They all knew it was Groudon and Kyogre, battling it out. Despite them being a good distance from them, they could still feel the effects of their battle. It only motivated them to find the base and put an end to all this as fast as they could.

It didn't take that long to find the base, maybe a minute or two. After all, it's hard to miss a huge building floating in the middle of the ocean. When Sophocles spotted it, he grabbed Lana and Kiawe's attention, pointing to it. Primarina stopped as Sophocles turned around and put his flashlight into SOS mode. The other two groups had their attention caught by the bright flashing light. The remaining five made their way toward the flashing light, and quickly found the source.

Once everyone was close enough, Sophocles pointed to the big building. It was no small feat to put something so massive into the water at all, not to mention the architectural unconventionality it must've taken to allow the whole thing to float in the middle of the ocean. It was pretty far away, probably almost a kilometer. And the ocean itself was fairly dark, so it was already hard to see; and yet, the base was impossible to miss. It was that big. The base itself was pitch black, but it stood out from the blue and dark blue of the deeper ocean. It had no particular shape; if anything, it just looked like a big black box.

They all began to swim toward it, as a big clump of people and Pokemon. They all made sure to stay close together, so as to not lose anyone. After about another minute of holding on to the water-types, they made it close enough to the base to see what was going on.

Just as Sophocles had predicted, they could make out a relatively small box that extended out from the main base. They also saw a much smaller submarine, and two people dressed in all black taking out cargo from the submarine. They watched intently as the two guys pushed half of their cargo - which was a substantial amount - towards the box that was heading toward them. The cargo itself seemed to stay almost perfectly still underwater, only moving in the direction it had been pushed. The box opened up from the middle and closed around the cargo. After that, it retreated back to the main base, likely to be received by whoever was waiting inside.

Brock immediately saw that this was their chance. The 'mailbox' was fairly large; definitely big enough to fit eight extra human passengers. If they swam up to hide amongst that cargo, they would be brought immediately up into the base, where they could then unleash Zorua.

Brock made as much noise as he could with his mouth to draw everyone's attention. He pointed at the submarine that had brought cargo, and then back at the retreating box. He motioned to everyone in the group, and then at the box. Sophocles pointed at himself, then at the box, with his eyes wide, as if asking if Brock was sure about this. Brock nodded grimly, as if to wordlessly say that it might be their only chance. The group shared worried glances, before steeling themselves. They all looked back to Brock and nodded seriously, and Brock nodded back.

As the box began to move away from the huge underwater structure once again, the group of eight and their Pokemon slowly began to approach it. Luckily, the deeper ocean was fairly dark, so it hid their approach to the two delivery guys well enough to keep them from being spotted easily. The big box eventually stopped about five meters from the delivery guys, and they began to push their cargo - all in waterproof boxes - into it. One by one, each group made their way into the box, and hid amongst the boxes of cargo that were being shoved into the box. As Dawn, Brock, and Piplup entered the box, it began to close. The group all shared looks of relief that they had made inside safely.

Eventually, the box they all had inhabited stopped moving suddenly. This threw them all off balance, so they all grabbed on to boxes or each other to keep themselves from falling over. Just as they were recovering, the box was drained. Once it was all gone, they all simultaneously removed their oxygen tanks from their mouths and breathed out in relief. However, they all quickly became vigilant again as Brock whispered.

"Alright, everyone, lay low. Lillie, you ready with Zorua?" Brock looked over to Lillie.

Lillie, who was kneeling down with Mallow, Serena, and Mudkip in a small huddle, nodded to Brock. As the box began to ascend into the structure, everyone ducked down in the midst of all the cargo and Lillie let Zorua out of its Pokeball. She smiled at it encouragingly and gave it a thumbs up. Zorua grinned in response, and it immediately disguised itself as a Gorebyss.

The box eventually halted its ascent and opened up on all sides. The group could hear muttering at first and eventually it became more clear; it was the guard grunts talking amongst themselves. It seemed like they weren't actually talking about anything of note; there was one conversation going on between female voices about how much they disliked guard duty, and another between two male voices that seemed to be arguing about the sports leagues held in Unova. They seemed pretty relaxed given the rampaging legendary Pokemon going wild just a few kilometers away.

The four guards approached the cargo casually, unsuspecting. As they were chatting amongst themselves, their voices cut out suddenly as they all spotted something bright pink flailing about. It was a Gorebyss.

"Looks like we got another wild Pokemon. And a Gorebyss this time!" One of the male guards commented.

"Man, we're really on a roll! First that Huntail a couple hours ago, now a Gorebyss!" One of the females chimed in.

"Too bad we can't keep them. It's so pretty, I want it!" The other female voice said.

"And I wanted that Huntail." The other male voice added. "Oh well. Off you go, fishy."

One of the male guards approached the 'Gorebyss', which had stopped flailing. Before it was touched, the 'Gorebyss' let loose a nasty Night Daze, stunning all the guards and sending them crashing down to the floor. They weren't knocked out, but they were certainly going to be dazed for a while after taking Zorua's move from such close range.

"Go, go, go!" Brock yelled, directing traffic.

"Let's move it!" Dawn added.

Everyone stood up and took off past the incapacitated guards on the floor. They were in a fairly large room; all black with a huge sigma character taking up the far wall. On either side of that sigma, there were halls, left open; no doors or anything. The one on the left was blue, the one on the right was red.

Brock spoke up as the group began to separate. "Alright. We'll take the Blue Orb."

Dawn pumped her first. "And we'll take red!"

"How are our groups?" Brock inquired.

"Looks like we're five and three." Serena responded quickly. "Should one of us go with the boys?"

"Give us Lana. That way we have our group all here in case of an emergency." Sophocles spoke up.

Lana turned the rest of the girls and nodded. The girls all nodded back. They didn't really have time to argue. They needed to move fast. Lana sprinted over to join the boys' group.

"Alright, good luck!" Dawn grinned.

"Good luck to you all, too!" Brock responded in kind.

"We gotta move, before those guards wake up! C'mon!" Mallow grabbed Lillie's hand and took off running into the red hall.

"Ah!" Lillie yelped in surprise. Reacting as fast as she could, she grabbed Serena's hand. Mallow didn't stop running. "Serena!"

"Lillie?" Serena looked down to see that Lillie had grabbed her hand. Quickly, she felt herself being pulled in the direction of the hall and yelped in surprise. She turned to the last member of their group and grabbed her hand. "Dawn!"

"Huh?" She turned to Serena, puzzled. As Mallow continued to run with no sign of slowing down, Dawn's eyes widened in fear before she yelped as she almost fell over, being dragged along by Mallow's brute force. She quickly adjusted and started to run after her female friends.

"You're not fooling around, huh, Mallow?!" Dawn exclaimed as she struggled to find her footing and keep up with the girls in front of him.

"Well, in her defense, we couldn't exactly just stay there and let those guards wake up." Serena said in between strained breaths.

"Who knows how long until an alarm goes off, too?" Lillie spoke up.

Just then, a blaring alarm sound sounded out throughout the base, and red lights start to flare around them.

"Perhaps I shouldn't have said anything…" Lillie said sheepishly.

"A stupid alarm's never stopped us before, and we ain't gonna let it stop us now!" Dawn proclaimed. "Keep movin' girls!"

"Guess they know we're here." Brock said, running alongside his comrades in the blue hall.

"FINALLY!" Kiawe shouted.

"You're a little bit too into this, aren't you?" Sophocles spoke sheepishly.

"Stop where you are!" A voice called out to the girls. A group of uniform-wearing Team Sigma grunts exited a hall from the side to block their path. "It's time you surrender before you get hurt!"

One of the grunts threw up and caught a Pokeball, snickering, cocky. "It's a shame, but you pretty ladies are gonna have to be turned over to the bosses."

The girls all recoiled from that specific grunt. Mallow sighed. "Some guys really disgust me."

"We don't have time to waste here!" Serena called out. "We've got to move!"

"You're right, sister, so let's show these a-holes what these pretty ladies can do!" Dawn yelled. "Mamoswine, let's go!"

Dawn's massive mammoth Pokemon materialized in front of the group of girls. Dawn didn't hesitate. "Charge through, Mamoswine! Take Down!"

Mamoswine charged straight toward the group of grunts with no sign of slowing down. The grunts' eyes all widened in fear as they froze in place, unable to change the course of the massive Pokemon charging straight at them. Mamoswine sent them all flying to the walls, clearing a path for the girls.

Dawn pointed. "Let's move!"

As the girls all took off running after Mamoswine through the path it had cleared, Serena turned to Dawn. "That was ruthless."

"And they deserved it, too." Dawn answered rashly, flipping the bird to the guys on the floor as she ran by.

However, it wasn't long before more Sigma grunts blocked their path, immediately sending out their Pokemon for defense. A couple Lairon using Iron Defense were able to stop Mamoswine's charge.

"Braixen, come out!" Serena called out her first Pokemon.

"Flygon, let's go!" Mallow called for her Ultra Guardian ride.

"Altaria, you too!" Lillie followed Mallow's lead.

"Quick, Braixen, Fire Blast!"

Braixen wasted no time to launch a Fire Blast at the Lairon in front of Mamoswine, knocking them both backward and out of Mamoswine's way.

"Use Dragon Breath!" Mallow and Lillie called simultaneously. Their Ride Pokemon both fired the move at different Shelgon, knocking them both down for the count. Mamoswine continued to charge forward, pushing aside the grunts in their way, rendering them down for a while as well.

As the girls continued to push forward, more and more Sigma grunts confronted them, soon greatly overwhelming them in numbers. The girls finally had to come to a stop, surrounded by the enemy. Dawn grit her teeth, while the other three and their Pokemon continued to look determined to push forward. They weren't going to stop here, and they'd make sure of that.

In the blue hall, the other four found themselves in a similar situation. With Swampert, Charizard, Vikavolt, and Primarina all out by their trainers' sides, they were surrounded by Team Sigma grunts. There just seemed to be no end to them. They were vastly outnumbered. Brock grit his teeth. "We've got to get through somehow."

Kiawe seemed to be building up pent up rage and intensity. "These guys DON'T STAND A CHANCE!"

Sophocles and Lana stood back-to-back. Lana side-eyed him. "Scared, Sophocles?"

"Not a bit." He grinned, despite shivering ever so slightly. "I'd be more worried about you, Lana."

In both halls, all eight human brains weren't filled with much else other than thoughts of getting past the grunts in their way. However, one girl in the red hall was thinking of someone far away.

'_Oh, Ash… I know you're out there doing your best… so we're going to do the same. We'll get to those orbs, no matter what. I promise.'_

* * *

**I promise I haven't forgotten about this! I've come this far, I'm going to make sure this gets finished. I recently got the urge to write again, so hopefully I can ride that wave and finish this story up. Sorry this one was a little slow, it gets better from here.**

**I've shortened this up to 17 chapters plus an epilogue, btw. Just to let y'all know. It's not really losing anything important, it's just for convenience. I'll go into more detail about my future works in the very last chapter. **

**Song: "Aqualotic" by Hello Meteor from their 2018 album "The Coastal Obscure"  
Got some more synthwave action for you. Hello Meteor is just some really chill stuff and I highly recommend any of their albums for chilling or studying or what have you.**


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